


Night Melody

by alexdamien



Series: Remade Anew [16]
Category: Saint Seiya
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Fairy Tale Elements, M/M, Sibling Incest, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:00:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 28,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24328432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexdamien/pseuds/alexdamien
Summary: Shura, general of the most cruel company of mercenaries in the land, lays siege to the castle of vampire lord Saga, seeking revenge against him for having tricked him into killing Aioros ten years ago, but when Aioros suddenly turns out to actually be alive after all, what will he do?
Relationships: Aquarius Camus/Scorpio Milo, Cancer Deathmask/Capricorn Shura/Pisces Aphrodite, Capricorn Shura/Leo Aiolia, Capricorn Shura/Sagittarius Aiolos, Sagittarius Aiolos/Capricorn Shura/Leo Aiolia
Series: Remade Anew [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1633726
Comments: 17
Kudos: 23





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A very heartfelt thank you to Callieparis for her wonderful work in betaing this fic. All your comments and corrections have made this fic much better than I could have managed on my own. Your efforts have been truly priceless.
> 
> Also, this fic is the continuation of my other fic "Ice Melody" and happens within the same universe. If you have any doubts about what happened to Milo or want to read his full story, go read that one too.

Shura’s day was quickly going from bad to worse. Not only was he laying siege to a castle with actual vampires, always a bad idea. But twenty of his men had disappeared in to the night. Worst of all, one of them was Milo, his one essential piece to be able to turn this siege on his favor. After all, if there was someone who could kill a vampire, it was the best assassin in the land.

And now he was gone.

“Sir,” said his lieutenant, pushing aside the curtain over the entrance of Shura’s tent.

“Did you find them?” growled Shura. “Any of them?”

“Not yet, but-“

“Then keep looking!”

“Sir, we found some refugees who fled from the citadel. They claim they know of secret passages into the castle.”

Shura collapsed into his chair. With Milo gone now, that kind of information might tilt the balance in his favor… Or it might not. He might end up having to go back to prince Aphrodite with his tail between his legs, begging for more forces. He sighed. Nothing was for sure when battling vampires. Much less when you were battling Saga turned vampire.

No. He would not face him recklessly. Anyone but him.

“Let them in. I’ll speak to them. But keep looking! They  can’t have just vanished like nothing. If the vampires have found a way to break through our barriers we need to find it now!”

His lieutenant bowed. “Yes, sir,” he said, and stepped aside to let in someone.

Shura closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. He was getting a headache from the worry. Things had changed far too quickly for his taste. Right before the battle. This would definitely impact his men’s m ood.

“Ah, it’s you,” said a soft voice. “Look Aioria, it’s Shura.”

Shura’s heart jumped painfully in his chest and he looked up. Aioros stared down at him, an easy smile on his face. He looked a bit pale, and seemed a bit thinner, but otherwise he looked the same. The same as he looked every night when Shura relived the moment he had killed him. The same as he had looked while falling down that precipice ten years ago. Shura lost his breath, his throat constricting.

Aioros lowered his eyes. “Ah, don’t be so upset. We didn’t expect that…uhm…,” started Aioros, trailing away.

Behind him, Aioria’s angry green eyes glared at Shura from over Aioros shoulders. He had grown almost as tall as Aioros, but still retained a certain youthfulness to his face.

“A-Aioros,” said Shura, standing up. And somehow, hearing the name falling from his own mouth, with his own voice, made everything so much more real. “You’re alive…”

Aioros laughed, gesturing with his eyes and rolling his eyes. “I am! Hahaha! I guess. Gee, what an encounter.”

They stared at each other in silence for an uncomfortable moment, until Aioros lowered his eyes again. 

“You look so much older now. You’ve grown so much…,” he said.

Shura swallowed back his words.  _ “And you haven’t. You haven’t aged a day.” _

Aioros looked over his shoulder to his brother. “Aioria, say hi,” he said.

Aioria hid even more behind him, pulling on his brother’s sleeve. “Let’s leave,” he said, his voice a whisper. 

“We can’t leave Aioria. Please be nice. Shura can help us go back home,” said Aioros, frowning.

Shura snapped out of his daze. “Ah, please take a seat. So, you…you lived in the citadel?” he asked, then he noticed he didn’t have more chairs, since he always took standing audiences, and he had to call for more chairs. He also called for food and drink to be brought. 

“You’re being too nice,” said Aioros with an easy smile when they finally sat down in his tent. Next to him, Aioria looked at everything displayed on the table with disgust. “You really haven’t changed.”

“He ought to at least be nice, after he murdered you,” muttered Aioria.

“Aioria! Stop being so mean!” chastised him Aioros.

Shura slunk back on his chair. “He’s right. Aioros, I did…I did hurt you. And…Now I know that you weren’t a traitor. That Saga was just framing you, but I still-“

“I know. I heard all about what happened after we escaped,” said Aioros, fiddling with his wine goblet. “Saga’s plan was discovered in the end. That was good. That really lifted a weight off my chest.”

Shura sighed, throwing his hands in the air. “And now he’s a vampire! Can you believe it? As if things couldn’t get any worse!”

Aioros lifted his eyebrows at that. “Saga? Oh, Saga didn’t take over the castle! That was Kanon, his twin brother.”

Shura blinked a couple times, trying to process what he had just heard. “His…twin…brother…? Saga has a twin brother?!”

Aioros laughed. “Yes! It was a secret. I’m surprised it wasn’t discovered after his whole coup got exposed.”

Shura closed his eyes. There were too many revelations for a day. Aioros was alive. Aioria had been with him all the time. Saga wasn’t really a vampire but he had a vampire twin brother. It was all too much for him.

“Gods, what a mess ! ,” he muttered. He opened his eyes again and there was still Aioros, sitting across from him, in that usual simple smile that seemed to always be on his lips. The smile he had longed to see for over a decade. “So you fled here? After I…”

“Sort of,” said Aioros. “We were traveling up north for a while, going wherever we could. But then we settled here. Well, until Kanon arrived.”

Shura nodded. “I see.”

“Are you going to try and take the castle over? With your forces it can be done! There are still about a hundred people in the caves, the ones who managed to escape like us. We can help you make your way in. Ahhh, please help us, we really would like to go back home.”

Shura  poured  himself more wine. Going back home. Aioros was alive, and he now had a new place to call home. Unlike him, who had lost it when he had let him fall down that precipice. Because after Aioros was gone, there had been no place for him to call his own. No place to feel at home. He owed him that at least.


	2. Chapter 2

Shura gave Aioros and Aioria a tent to stay in, near his own. With Kanon vampire s’  so close, and with the way so many of his men had vanished in the night without a trace, Shura didn’t want to have them try and return to whatever cave they had been hiding in. Aioros as always had thanked him for his hospitality and generosity, making Shura feel even more like trash. He had wanted to tell him “Don’t thank me. Don’t thank the person who almost murdered you.” But the words had died on his lips. He found that when he looked at Aioros, he wanted to say less and less. As if a single word from his lips would break the spell and make him vanish in front of him.

Shura paced around the camp, looking up from time to time to see the night towers standing up ahead around the citadel, bathing everything around in a permanent night. If only they weren’t there, things would be so much easier. He would have stormed the castle days ago if only those damn towers didn’t give the vampires a permanent advantage. He wondered how long they had been there. How long it had taken Kanon to raise them up. 

He made his way towards Aioros’ tent, and dithered a moment at the entrance, unsure  about  announcing himself. He could hear them talking inside.

“Here, I finished it. Isn’t it cute? Do you like it?” asked Aioros, voice upbeat and excited. Shura listened for Aioria’s reply, but he took a long moment to answer.

“I want to leave,” he said, in the end.

“Aioria, come on…,” said Aioros.

“I hate him. Even if he can retake the castle, I don’t want to have to thank him for anything. Let’s leave and find another place to live.”

Aioros gave a long, drawn out sigh. Shura could hear him fall over the pillows. “Aioria,” he whined. “I’m so tired. I don’t want to have to find another place to live in. Please, just let it go. It’s so exhausting to hold grudges.”

“But he-!”

Behind Shura, one of his men called out to him. “Sir! We found something,” he said, running up to him.

Shura’s heart jumped, all his blood turning to ice from fear of being caught eavesdropping on Aioros and his brother. He whirled around, giving the soldier a murderous look, then noticed he was holding something bright in his hand. 

“Sir, we found this at the edge of the camp but…it wasn’t there this morning. I checked the same place myself. Someone must have left it there at some point,” the man said, handing over the small white object to Shura. It looked like some kind of circle.

Shura extended his hand to hold it, and felt his skin freeze upon contact. He gasped.

“It’s like ice, sir,” said the soldier.

Shura lifted it up to the light of the torches lit around the camp. The small circle shone against the flames, cold and clean of even the slightest bit of dust. He held it in his other hand, and found that it wasn’t as cold anymore, but still felt indeed like holding a piece of ice.

“What is that?” asked Aioros’ deep voice, close to Shura’s ear.

Shura felt a shiver go down his back. “Uhm, Aioros…”

“Look, it opens,” he said, pointing to the object in Shura’s hands. Shura looked down and realized that the small circle did open, and inside seemed to be something like a looking glass. 

“Hmmm, prince Aphrodite had one of these too,” he mused.

“Come, it’s cold outside and along with that thing, your hands will freeze,” said Aioros, pulling on Shura’s arm to lead him inside the tent. Shura let himself be pulled in, where the coal stove in the middle gave the place a comfortable heat.

Lying on the pillows and playing with a small stuffed lion, Aioria glared up at Shura when he sat down next to the stove. Aioros grabbed a blanket from among those strewn over the floor and draped it over Shura’s shoulders.

“Leave that down and warm your hands,” he told him.

Shura shook his head. “I’m fine,” he said, staring at the small mirror within the cold white casing.

Aioros took the mirror away from him and set it down on the floor, then grabbed Shura’s hands and pulled them closer to the stove.

“You haven’t changed,” he said. “You’re always pushing yourself too much. Your hands are so cold. What if you get frostbite from that thing?”

“Would be a good punishment for getting his nose where it doesn’t belong,” complained Aioria, giving Shura a look of annoyance. Lying like that, proud and aggressive, he did seem like the little lion that Aioros had always called him when he was a child. He hadn’t had that angry shine  in his eyes back then. Not even after seeing Shura kill his brother.

“Aioria…,” said Aioros, a warning in his tone.

“I was about to announce myself,” lied Shura, looking away from Aioria. “But he’s right. Aioros, what I did…”

Aioros gave an exasperated sigh. “What you did was ten years ago! And I’ve had enough of dwelling on it!” he said, angrier than Shura had ever heard him. “I am the victim here and I would like to get over it already, so please be so kind as to respect my wishes. Honestly you two, all I want is to go back home. Can we just focus on that?”

Shura slumped his shoulders and nodded. Aioria huffed and curled up on his side, holding the little lion in his arms.

Once Shura hands ’ warmed up, he went back to look at the mirror. Aioros handed him a small scarf so he wouldn’t have to hold it directly while he examined it.

“Other than how cold it is,” said Shura. “This seems to be a normal looking glass. Perhaps it is something sent by Kanon?”

“I don’t think it was him.”

“Hmmm, well vampires have strange powers. He might have powers over ice that we don’t know about. Vampires are still a great mystery,” said Shura, turning the looking glass around and around, trying to find any other detail that would provide more clues. “I wish Milo was around. He would probably know what to do. He was much more versed in the occult than I am .”

“Milo? Who is Milo?” asked Aioros.

Shura was about to answer when he noticed something moving within the reflective part of the looking glass. A strange white fog swirled within the glass, growing and shifting until it had covered it completely.

“Oy, are you sure this thing will work? Camus? Are you hearing me?” came Milo’s voice from within the mirror.

Shura gave a sharp intake of breath. “Milo? Milo is that you?” he called into the glass.

The white fog swirled once more, and suddenly he could see Milo’s face. 

“Hey, Shura! Hi. Wow, I was starting to worry this thing wouldn’t work. Camus decided he didn’t need to include any instructions,” said Milo, muttering the last part while looking at someone off to the side that Shura couldn’t see.

“It is pretty self -explanatory,” said the person, but Shura couldn’t recognize the voice. He just noticed he had a very cold, indifferent tone.

Milo rolled his eyes. “He’s kind of silly sometimes,” he said.

“Milo where the hell are you? What happened to you?” demanded Shura, growing increasingly worried.

“Err, well it’s sort of a long story. Some kids kidnapped me and now I’m at Camus’ castle in the white lands. But I’m fine. Camus is really nice. A bit socially awkward, but very nice. He wants to marry me.”

“What?! What the fuck do you mean some guy in the white lands wants to marry you?”

Milo held up his hands. “It’s fine, don’t worry. We’ve been married before. And I’m pretty sure we’ll be married in future lives too, so it’s really nothing new.”

“Milo are you even listening to yourself?! What are you even talking about?!”

Aioros set his hand on Shura’s shoulder. “Shura, calm down. Let him explain,” he said in a soothing voice.

Shura took several deep breaths, trying to get a hold of himself. But it truly seemed like Milo had gone insane.

“Milo, where is this castle? Can you get out?” he asked.

“Ah, see, now you’re all worried. I’m fine. It’s an ice castle in the white lands. I can get out but I don’t want to leave Camus alone. He keeps saying he dreams about his own death and that’s getting on my nerves.”

Camus’ voice came again, still from somewhere Shura couldn’t see.

“We’re all going to die. I’m just trying to pinpoint how I’m going to go,” he  intervened .

Milo rolled his eyes. “See? He’s being ridiculous again. Anyway, why don’t you come here?”

“Milo I’m laying siege to a castle! Remember?!”

Milo face palmed. “Oh, right! Saga. Sheesh, sorry. Just, a lot of things have happened. Right, the castle with all the night towers. Look, maybe you should leave that alone. All that revenge is gonna end you. Tell Aphrodite it’s not worth the effort.”

“Milo I can’t do that! And what are you planning anyway? Are you gonna stay in the middle of the white lands with whoever that is? You barely know him and you’re going to marry him now?”

Milo pouted. “Seriously, you have to lay the Saga issue to rest. Uhmm, let see…What could be done? Camus…”

Milo moved on the image in the looking glass, making space for someone. A young man with pale aqua hair sat down next to him. He had an icy countenance, and an expression of cold distaste.

“Is that Shura? Your friend?” he asked.

“Yes, they need help against Saga!” said Milo.

Camus lifted an elegant eyebrow at that. “Saga? Saga is not in that castle,” he said.

Screams and loud yelling came from outside, and Shura looked away. His lieutenant opened the door to the tent. 

“Sir! We’re being attacked!” he said.

“I suppose, it would be fine to help them a little,” mused Camus from within the looking glass. “It wouldn’t make any difference in the end though…”

But Shura had already sprinted to action, running out of the tent and drawing his sword. He found a full on attack of Kanon forces ’ upon them. Black blurs flew over them, vampires knocking down his men with a single strike, then flying away in a second. Behind him, Aioros shot out a fire arrow that caught a vampire going straight towards him.

“Watch out!” called Aioros. Next to him, Aioria looked around, sword drawn. He moved to run to the side, towards where three men had cornered a vampire, but Aioros pulled him back. “Don’t get away from me!”

Tents were going up in flames, and overhead, flares of blue light indicated that the vampires were breaking down all of Shura shields ’ one by one. He gripped his sword harder. He hadn’t expected them to attack so soon and with such ferocity. 

“Get the secondary shields up!” he yelled, running for where he could see one of the secondary towers they had built.

“Shura no!” called Aioros behind him. But Shura knew if he couldn’t get the shields up they were all going to get killed that very night.

A blur landed before him and he lifted his sword to block a claw. The blur jumped back, and Shura noticed long blue hair fluttering in the wind. The man stood straight, smirking at Shura with the same face that Saga had. The same face and the same body that Shura had imagined himself killing night after night. 

And yet, there was something in his expression. A casual sneer that seemed out of place in that face.

“Oh, you. What an annoyance you  are ,” the Saga look alike said, and his voice was not nearly as deep as Saga’s used to be. Not quite the right timbre. Suddenly, the spell was broken, and he was sure this wasn’t Saga.

“Kanon,” he muttered.

Kanon lifted an eyebrow at hearing his name. “Oh, there’s something I don’t hear often. How did you find out? That’s a secret, you know?” he said, winking at him. “Come with me and tell me all you know.”

He prepared to pounce on him, but an arrow shot at him and he had to jump to the side. More arrows fell in front of him. Shura looked back and saw Aioros and a few of Shura’s archers shooting at Kanon from afar.

Kanon floated above, still between Shura and the shield. 

“So annoying,” he said, as if an afterthought. He waved his arm and a wave of darkness seemed to separate from the shadows and hit the archers, knocking them down like dolls. 

“Aioros!” called Shura, running towards him.

“You’re coming with me!” said Kanon, grabbing Shura’s arm. His sharp claws pierced through his tunic right into his skin.

The temperature dropped sharply. As if a heavy presence fell upon them, and a thin layer of ice covered everything. Shura gasped, and felt ice crystals over his skin cracking. A blizzard blew over them, making Kanon let go of him. Shura tried to run, but found himself frozen  on  the spot. All around he heard the screams of vampires unable to fly, and among their voices, suddenly Kanon called. 

“Go back! Go back to the castle!” he ordered. Shura looked towards where he heard the voice, and saw him struggle to fly away. An arrow hit him in the shoulder and he fell down. Shura looked to where it came from and found Aioros struggling to stand up, bow in hand. He broke the ice freezing him to the ground and ran forward, even as the temperature dropped further, and another wave of ice blew over the camp. 

He reached Shura and pulled him up. “Did he hurt you?” he asked, looking at the big red stain on Shura’s sleeve.

Shura shook his head. With the cold, he could barely feel the pain. They looked over to where the vampires struggled to fly away, already to o far for the reach of their arrows. 

The blizzard died down.

“It seems Milo’s friend really helped us,” said Aioros,  assisting  Shura to walk forward.

Shura groaned. “That bastard,” he muttered, his teeth chattering.

They heard the whining of horses approaching, and looked ahead to see a great white carriage pulled by pure white horses as big as two men. Shura thought the driver was a tall white man, but as the carriage pulled up in front of them, he noticed it was a man shaped white  _ thing _ . 

It had no face, no clothes, only the vague shape of a man.

“Master Shura. His Highness, King Camus of the White Lands, requests your presence at his castle,” said a tinkling voice that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

“And if we refuse?” asked Shura, who didn’t think it was such a good idea to get into some strange ice carriage pulled by demon horses.

“Your presence and the defense of your camp was a courtesy he extended  to his fiancé, Scorpion Milo, but if you would choose to reject his hospitality, I would of course deliver your message,” said the voice again.

Shura gritted his teeth.  _ ‘The defense of your camp’,  _ which meant that if he rejected his hospitality, that also meant rejecting his defense. He looked up at the ruined and frozen tower of his second shields, then over at the broken and half burnt towers of his main shields. He sighed.

“Fine, I’ll go,” he said, and climbed into the carriage. Aioros  started to  climb in after him. “What are you doing? Get out, you can’t go.”

Aioros frowned. “I’m not letting you go alone! You’re injured!” he said. Aioria  got inside after Aioros and closed the door.

“Wait, what is he doing?” asked Shura. “At least he should stay back!”

Aioria gave him a stare full of hatred and disgust. “You think I’m letting him go alone with you?” he said.

Shura gritted his teeth, but said no more.


	3. Chapter 3

Aioros cleaned and bandaged Shura’s wound during the trip to the White Lands.

“Once we’re there, we have to ask Camus for some water to clean it right or it’ll get infected,” said Aioros, staring doubtfully at his own handiwork on Shura’s arm.

Shura pulled his sleeve down. “I’m fine.”

“Try to sleep a little, you need some rest. I’ll wake you up when we get there.”

“What about you?  That thing he did with the shadows was so strange. Do you feel any pain?” asked Shura, staring at Aioros carefully, looking for any wound. He still looked a bit pale, slightly gaunt, as if he’d spent days hungry. He  glanced  at Aioria, and noticed the same thing in him. Kanon attacks’ had probably left them, along with the rest of the survivors, struggling to find any food. And last night they had barely eaten anything during the conversation at dinner. He beat himself up in his mind for not noticing that. 

Aioros shook his head. “I’m fine. He just caught me by surprise,” he said, then frowned. “He’s very fast.”

Shura laid back on his seat. “They’re all very fast, those vampires. I’ve fought a few throughout the years. Just to take one down I’ve needed up to ten men,” he said, tiredness seeping into his voice. “I try to avoid them though. They’re nasty bastards”

Aioros gave a soft laugh. “And yet you were preparing to attack Kanon  in  his castle when you thought he was Saga,” he said.

Shura felt his cheeks burn. “That…they’re intruding on prince Aphrodite lands ’ . He wants them gone,” he said, trying to justify his actions.

“Shura…While I’m happy that you’re here because we really need the help…I don’t want you to keep any resentment,” said Aioros, holding his hand. “Vengeance is unnecessary. I’m here.”

Shura looked down to the way that his hand fit within Aioros hands ’ . He was there. He really was. With the same smile, the same kind eyes. Shura blinked, wondering when the spell would break. When he would wake up and have him vanish again.

“He had you framed for treason,” he said finally, pulling his hand away from Aioros’ hold. “And I believed him. I believed him and executed you.”

Aioros winked at him. “You didn’t do a good job at that though,” he said, an amused smile at his lips.

Shura sighed.

The carriage slowed down and halted. The door opened, and Shura jumped out first, looking around for any threats before letting Aioros and Aioria climb down from the carriage. Behind the carriage stood a great white castle, and up above, heavy white clouds blocked the sky.

“Shura! Hey Shura!” called Milo, running  towards  them from the entrance of the grand ice castle that stood before them, white and silent against the whispers of the freezing winds.

Milo jumped to hug Shura, almost tackling him.

“You’re alright!” said Milo, holding on to Shura and ruffling his hair.

Shura pushed him off with a sigh and took a good look at Milo. He seemed to be completely fine, even if he looked strange dressed all in white.

“Milo, are you alright? Has anything happened to you?” he asked.

Milo laughed so loud, his laughter echoed over the columns of the castle.

“So many things have happened to me! You have no idea! I’m getting married now!” he said, and showed him a pale blue ring around his finger. It shone and glittered against the soft light of the white overcast skies above him, much more beautiful than any jewel Shura had ever seen. He reached out to hold Milo’s hand, almost unable to believe that a ring so beautiful could exist.

“That...Is that…?” said Shura, struggling for words to describe the ring.

“Isn’t it cool? Camus made it. He made everything here,” said Milo, waving towards the castle.

Aioros politely cleared his throat, and Shura snapped out of his daze.

“Ah, sorry. Milo, this is Aioros and Aioria. I...I found them…,” said Shura, introducing Milo to the brothers.

“Aioros? Aioria?” asked Milo, taking a look at them in their worn old tunics and roughed up looks. “Weren’t you supposed to be dead?”

“Milo!” cried Shura, scandalized.

“Yup!” said Aioros with a bright smile. “But now we’re here.”

“Well, that’s great!” said Milo, turning towards Shura. “Now you don’t have to keep chasing Saga and can retire in peace like you wanted.”

Shura felt his cheeks burning in embarrassment. 

“Milo that’s enough. I came because you need to come back. I’ve been looking for you for days!” he said, grabbing Milo’s arm and pulling him closer.

The winds all around died off, covering them in a heavy, unnatural silence.

“I was unaware that he wished to leave” said a cold voice, and a tall man with pale blue hair seemed to appear from midair, as if taking form from the very whiteness that surrounded them. His hair seemed to float by itself and a crown of ice glittered in his head, as precious and bright as the ring in Milo’s hand had been.

Milo stepped up to him and held his arm.

“Oy, so dramatic, I love it but you’re going to scare my friends,” he said, smiling up at him.

“I take it this is Camus, the man you intend to marry,” said Shura, looking at the man who had appeared.

Camus gave him only a slight distasteful look, then looked at Aioros.

“What do you want here? I don’t want you in my castle and you’re not taking Milo. I believe it was enough of a courtesy for me to aid you, so you could be gracious enough to leave,” he said, and the very air around him seemed to turn colder, harsher.

“Camus!” hissed Milo, frowning at him. “What are you doing? Don’t be so rude. And if you want to pick a fight, that’s not even Shura, that’s Aioros’, Shura’s friend.”

“I know that. And either way you’re not leaving, right?” he asked Milo.

“Of course not! Now stop being rude to them. Let’s at least invite them inside, they must be freezing here.”

“Ah, I’m fine,” said Aioros with an apologetic smile. “And we don’t want to impose. We could stay here. But Shura, he’s wounded and he needs some water to clean his wounds.”

Milo finally noticed the improvised bandage on Shura’s arm.

“What? You got hurt? Come, let’s get that cleaned inside right away. And of course none of you are staying outside, don’t be ridiculous. Camus, they need help,” said Milo, looking at Camus with pleading eyes.

Camus sighed, defeat showing in his face. He gave them a slight bow.

“Please follow me,” he said as he guided them inside.


	4. Chapter 4

Camus led Shura and Milo to a small room where a humanoid white being started cleaning the wound in his arm and applying strong smelling ointments to it, while he led Aioros and Aioria to a different place to eat something.

“Where did he take them?” demanded Shura, not even caring when the being cleaning his wound produced a small white needle and started stitching the worst of the wound.

“They’re fine. I tell you, Camus is a good guy. He won’t do anything to you. Didn’t he send out the arctic winds to help you when I asked?”

Shura huffed. “He might be good to you, but he was pretty nasty towards us,” he said, leaning back on the chair while the being finished fixing his wound. He took his arm back, opening and closing his fist a few times. “It’s fine now, thanks. Now, let’s go find them.”

Milo snickered. “Aww, you’re so desperate you can’t leave them out of your sight for a minute? How did you feel when you found out they weren’t dead?”

Shura gritted his teeth. “Stop joking, let’s go,” he said, standing up.

“That shaken, uh? But try to calm down. Everything’s fine now, no sense winding yourself up like you always do. Why don’t you try and enjoy the fact that the guy you murdered and have been obsessed with for ten years isn’t dead?”

Shura ignored him and walked out of the room where they were. Outside he found himself in the main foyer, staring at stairs going up above like the tendrils of a thousand spiderwebs, interconnecting and leading to so many directions it made him dizzy just to look at them.

“This way,” said Milo, pulling him towards a small staircase at the back. “It takes a while to get used to this place. It’s not so mad looking in the top floors, but I don’t think Camus will let you go so high. He’s very picky about that.”

Milo led him to a small double door guarded by two of the white looking beings, who bowed at him before opening the doors for him. Inside was a small waiting room with a few couches and a table piled with food. Aioros, Aioria and Camus sat there in a strange reverential silence until they heard them approach. Aioros turned around and smiled at Shura.

“Hey, did they clean your wound already? That was so fast,” he said, waving for them to take a seat at the table.

Shura sat between him and Camus, while Milo took a  place very close to his fiancé. Aioros pulled his arm closer to inspect the wound.

“It’s fine,” said Shura. “It just needed a few stitches but it didn’t hurt at all. Thank you Camus.”

The ice king nodded in acknowledgement but said nothing more, merely took a sip of the wine in his glass and waved a hand at the table. Plates and silverware, all made from some strange form of ice formed before their eyes.

“Please, help yourselves,” he said.

Shura noticed he had not manifested plates for Aioros and Aioria, and he frowned. He opened his mouth to say something about it, but Aioros set his hands softly on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry, we couldn’t wait for you and already ate. But you please go ahead,” he said with a soft smile.

“That must have been a rough trip, especially after a battle,” said Milo, helping himself to a few pieces of what looked like roasted lamb. The smell of it and of the many dishes before him finally got to Shura and he relaxed. It had really been a long day. A way too long day.


	5. Chapter 5

After the meal, Camus allowed them to stay at some of the rooms in the lower levels, as Milo had predicted.

“We’ll talk in the morning, ok? Rest well. We’ll be on the top floors,” said Milo as he left with Camus.

Shura reluctantly nodded and went into his room. He expected it to be horribly cold, but he found that the temperature seemed perfectly normal in the completely white room. He sat down on the bed and stared at the stitches on his arm. It didn’t hurt anymore, and hadn’t hurt at all when the white being had been fixing it. Whatever ointment he had used on it had been very good, and the wound seemed to be healing much faster than he’d expected. 

He laid down on the white duvet of the bed and stared up at the white ceiling. Outside the wind started howling. 

He realized he was starting to feel dizzy. 

Suddenly Aioros and Aioria were alive, Saga had a vampire twin brother who nearly kidnapped him, and Milo was getting married to some ice king or mage or spirit. Whatever Camus was. His entire life and view of the world had been turned upside down and shaken around and he couldn’t stop feeling like the whole world was spinning around him.

He closed his eyes, trying to rest for a little while, and fell asleep.

His nightmares came back to chase him. The same way they always arose at night to haunt him.

He found himself standing above Aioros’ bleeding body. The gash across his chest bled out, his blood spilling so red over the ground as he laughed.

“You didn’t do a good job, uh?” laughed Aioros, staring up at him.

But Shura knew he did.

He woke up with a scream and scrambled off the bed, the world a spinning blur of white all around until he got his feet back. He panted, struggling for breath and trying to figure out where he was until he remembered that he was still in Camus’ palace in the white lands. Outside, the overcast sky turned grayer, darker. His heart hammered in his chest and he couldn’t stop the feeling of dread and darkness building up inside him.

As if there was some darkness whispering at him all around.

He couldn’t stand it anymore. He knew there was something dangerous around, and he needed to get Milo, Aioros, and Aioria out of there as soon as possible. No matter what anybody said.

He opened the door, thankful that it moved without a single noise. Down the hallway, he noticed the doors to the brothers’ rooms and he couldn’t help but take a look in. He opened the door just a little. Only enough for him to be able to see the shape of Aioros on the bed, with Aioria sleeping next to him, just like he remembered them doing ten years ago. It seemed like old habits die hard, but the memory still brought a smile to his lips. 

He closed the door.

As silently as possible, he walked away from the rooms they had been assigned to, and found himself in the first floor foyer they had been allowed in. He looked up at the maze of staircases above, trying to figure out which to take.

After some consideration he bit his lower lip and chose one of the broadest staircases up, figuring that as long as he focused on going _up_ he shouldn’t have much trouble.

He ran up the steps two at a time, his footsteps giving a soft tinkling noise behind him as he moved.

He rose, one floor after another, again and again and again, focusing only on the staircases that led up. He found it a little less daunting with every floor he crossed. After all, he’d dealt with labyrinths before, no sense getting overwhelmed just because this one was made of ice. He trailed his fingers over the railing of the staircase he was climbing and looked over into the glittering maze of ice below. He could see clusters of darkness among the bright white and his heart started racing, feeling the danger approaching. He needed to get Milo and get out of there right away, before this danger could catch up to him. 

He finally arrived at a floor with a great open space and a silver carpet extending before him. He took a cautious step forward, looking at the details on the carpet. He could see battles depicted there. Armored knights with constellations shining above them, embroidered by what looked like diamonds. Shura crouched down to touch one. They really did seem to be diamonds. He gave a low whistle.

“How rich is this guy?” he wondered in a whisper.

Someone gave a low laugh behind him. Shura jumped to his feet and turned around, his hand going right to his sword.

“I’m pretty sure he can just make all of these things,” said Aioros, staring at him with an amused smile.

Shura let go of his sword and released the breath he was holding. 

“What are you doing here?” he asked, angry that Aioros had apparently followed him without him noticing. 

“When you opened my door I got worried you were going to do something rash, so I followed you,” he said. “What are you trying to do? Camus said we were not allowed here.”

Shura huffed and kept walking. “I’m getting Milo and we’re leaving now. It’s too dangerous here,” he said, looking around. Once the carpet ended, a half circle of hallways opened before them.

Aioros grabbed his arm.

“But Shura! Milo doesn’t want to leave!” he hissed, keeping his voice low.

“Milo is under some strange spell,” said Shura, pulling away from him and starting down one of the hallways. “That Camus guy... If he could build this whole castle, I’m sure he must have casted some spell on Milo. This isn’t normal for him.”

“But he said so himself,” said Aioros, chasing after him. “He doesn’t want to leave. And he didn’t seem to be under any type of spell. Can you really not accept that he has fallen in love with Camus? Why are you so obsessed with Milo?”

Shura looked behind him, to make sure that Aioros was still close. He noticed that he was rubbing his arms. Shura took off his black outer coat and draped it over Aioros shoulders’.

“You shouldn’t have come. It’s too cold for you,” he said. “And I’m not obsessed with Milo. I need his help to get rid of Kanon. He’s killed a few vampires. He’s the only one who can infiltrate in the citadel.”

“He’s not the only one! And Aioria and I know enough ways to get inside the citadel.”

“I’m not letting you in on the battle. Now let’s get Milo and get out of here,” he said, walking again.

Aioros whined like a child.

“Stop obsessing about Milo,” he complained.

Shura huffed. There had always been a certain aura of childishness around Aioros, but this was getting too much. He seemed to act the same as he did back then, and though he was annoyed at his attitude, it still made Shura lips’ turn up into a smile of endearment.

Voices reached them from the open space and they froze, turning towards where they could hear people approaching. 

Aioros reacted first, grabbed Shura, opened the nearest door and dragged him inside.

It turned out to be a coat closet.

“Don’t move,” hissed Aioros behind him.

Shura rolled his eyes. Outside he could hear steps approaching quickly.

“I just don’t see why you’re so upset with them!” was saying Milo.

“Well first of all, they want to take you away!” said Camus, voice growing louder.

“But I’m not leaving! Gods, Camus, after everything do you really think I would abandon you?!” said Milo.

They both fell silent, and Shura worried that Camus might try to hurt Milo, so he opened the door just a little to see what was happening, but Aioros held his arm and covered his mouth from behind.

“Stop!” he whispered against Shura’s ear. “Don’t do anything stupid!”

Shura’s heart jumped in his chest and the feeling of Aioros holding him. He swallowed, using every bit of his self-control to stay still and quiet.

Outside, near the entrance to the hallway, Camus stood in front of Milo and hung his head.

“So many times...I have turned my back on you. I cannot help but think you will pay me with the same coin one day,” he said.

Milo reached out to hold Camus’ face. 

“You dummy. You keep thinking of things that we’ve never done and things that have yet to come. Try and stay in the present. Right now, I don’t want to leave. Right now, I love you, alright? Now be nice to my friends and kiss me,” said Milo.

Camus reached to pull Milo against him, kissing him on the mouth. Milo draped his arms around his neck, moaning as Camus’ tongue found its way into his mouth. They kissed for a few moments, their hands roaming all over each other bodies’.

Shura wanted to look away, but with Aioros’ presence behind him, with his hands holding him in place, he didn’t dare to move even for a moment.

“Let’s do it,” said Milo, laughing against Camus’ mouth. “We haven’t done it here.”

“Here?!” asked Camus, and Shura noted that his cheeks seemed to color, bright red against his pale skin.

Shura gritted his teeth, hoping with all his heart that the proposition would be too much for Camus and they would just leave.

Milo laughed and started opening his shirt and tracing his hands over his exposed chest.

“Is there any issue?” he asked, winking at Camus.

“Our bed is on the next floor,” he said, yet made no move to pull away. Instead he trailed his fingertips over the muscles of Milo’s abdomen, making him shiver.

Milo opened his pants and turned around, bracing against the wall.

“That’s too far, don’t you think?” asked Milo, pulling down his pants and spreading his legs.

Shura felt his heart racing yet again.

He had never thought about Milo that way, but he wasn’t a bad looking guy in any way. And as much as Shura despised the guy, Camus was also a very good looking man. Slim, with perfect pale skin, his hands roaming Milo’s tanned body as he undressed him...It was impossible for Shura’s body not to react to such a sight!

“Are they really going to do it right there?” asked Aioros against Shura’s ear. So close that he could feel his breath tickling his skin.

Shura swallowed around the sudden knot in his throat and tried to move the arm that Aioros was holding down to try to at least get some distance between them, but Aioros held him down even harder.

“Don’t!” he hissed. “Don’t do anything rash!”

Shura gave a quick prayer to any god that would listen for Aioros to please pull away from him.

Outside, Camus was already pushing into Milo’s body. The assassin’s moans echoing in the empty halls, and through the vaulted ceilings. 

“Ah, Camus, deeper,” he begged.

Camus thrusted harder into him, pushing him against the wall. “You’re so insatiable,” said Camus, his icy façade cracking as he ground into Milo’s body. “How did I keep my hands to myself for so long?”

Shura swallowed, thinking how he was being held in the same position as Milo. How Aioros could simply pull down his pants and thrust into his body. His eyes rolled back when the image of Aioros thrusting into him flashed through his mind and he couldn’t help but pant against Aioros’ hand over his mouth.

“Shura, come on,” whispered Aioros against Shura’s ear, his breath tickling against Shura’s ear. “They’ll hear us and then Camus will be really upset.”

Shura summoned all of his self-control, his nails scraping against the wall. Did Aioros truly not realize the effect he was having on Shura? Was he really so innocent that he thought Shura was losing control just because he was seeing Milo get pounded against the wall? He inhaled, but with Aioros’ hand over his mouth, all he could smell was Aioros’ scent right into his nose.

“Ah! There! Fuck, Camus, harder!” cried Milo, snapping Shura away from his thoughts. Why did Milo have to be this loud?

“If I let you go,” whispered Aioros, and his breath tickling Shura’s back sent a shiver down his spine. “Promise you won’t do anything stupid.”

Shura let his head fall forward against the wall. His grip on his self-control was slipping, and he had to focus completely just to stay still and not push his ass back right into Aioros’ groin. He swallowed again, wondering if Aioros had also grown hard. If he would pound into Shura as hard as Camus was pounding into Milo. If he would be as rough, or he would still be kind and soft while lost in pleasure.

The memory of Aioros above him, thrusting into him with a wicked smile flashed through his mind, reminding him that he did know how Aioros would look like, buried deep into him and lost in pleasure.

After all, prince Aphrodite had allowed him to see it, in exchange for his allegiance.

And his body.

* * *

_Back then, Shura had had to fight down the dread rising up in his throat when he saw the great bed with red blankets before him._

_“Getting nervous?” asked Aphrodite’s sweet voice. His fingertips caressed Shura’s chin. “You don’t seem like a shy virgin.”_

_Shura pulled away from him. “If this isn’t true…,” he warned._

_“You’ll see it, don’t worry,” said the prince’s necromancer, the one they called Deathmask, taking off his clothes and throwing them aside before climbing into the bed._

_He wasn’t bad looking at all, underneath those drab black clothes. Tanned and slim, Shura might have chosen him for a night of pleasure anyway. To drive into him while closing his eyes and imagining Aioros’ face._

_But they had promised that he would be able to see Aioros. To feel him. As real an illusion as it could be. Just a night with them, and then his allegiance once he’d had his night of delight with the man he’d killed._

_He fought down his wariness and started stripping, while prince Aphrodite took a seat next to a table with a vase of red roses on it. Guessing he might want to watch him get it started with his necromancer, Shura ignored him, finished stripping, and climbed in bed with Deathmask._

_“So serious,” said the necromancer, grabbing at Shura hips_ _’_ _. “Were you like this with him too?”_

_Shura tentatively placed his hands on Deathmask shoulders’. “We never had sex.”_

_“You poor thing,” said Aphrodite, standing up from his seat and grabbing a few of the roses. “Never had a chance before he died. What took him from you?”_

_Deathmask pulled him against his chest. He was hot, and the hard feel of his muscles started a fire inside Shura. He really wasn’t bad in bed, for someone with such a profession._

_“I…I killed him,” said Shura, while Deathmask started kissing a trail down his neck, pushing him down on the bed._

_Aphrodite laughed and approached them. In his hands he carried a couple roses._

_“You killed the man you loved,” he said and gave a dramatic sigh. “What a love story. A story of love and death and demise. I love it. I knew from the moment I saw you that you were a tortured romantic soul, but I never imagined it would be this bad.”_

_Shura growled. He would submit to them in bed for a night, but he wouldn’t allow himself to be mocked like this._

_“When will I see him?” he demanded._

_Aphrodite gave an amused smirk and pricked his finger with the thorn of a rose. He extended his bleeding finger towards Shura’s mouth._

_“Drink this,” he ordered._

_Shura took Aphrodite’s finger into his mouth. The metallic taste of blood had a strange floral aftertaste in his tongue. It seemed to fit Aphrodite’s ethereal beauty. He really was the most beautiful of all the princes of the known world, Shura had to admit. The title was not excessive in any way like he had thought before meeting him._

_Aphrodite pulled away his finger and traced the side of Shura’s face._

_“What was his name?” he asked, tearing the petals from one rose and letting them fall over Shura._

_“Aioros,” said Shura._

_Aphrodite grabbed the other flower, and placed_ _it_ _among the tousled locks of Shura’s hair. The scent of the roses filled his nose. All Shura could smell was their scent permeating everything. He felt dizzy. Deathmask caresses_ _’_ _over his body made him shiver. His touch felt hotter. His lips kissing his navel made Shura gasp. He was already so hard, after being barely touched._

_“Aioros…sounds like a strong name,” said Aphrodite, leaning down to steal an open mouthed kiss from Shura._

_He tasted like flowers, like fresh rain, like a garden blooming at night. Shura moaned, grasping at the sheets, and panted for breath when Aphrodite pulled away._

_“He was very strong,” said Shura, his voice dreamy as reality faded away. “He was…Ah, the strongest. I wanted to be like him. I wanted…I wanted to have him. I wanted him to be mine. Only mine.”_

_Deathmask lips_ _’_ _closed around the head of Shura’s length, making him gasp and buck up at him. Aphrodite let his fingers trail down Shura’s chest. The touch ignited a fire inside him. His whole body felt hot. Too hot. He moaned and reached down to grasp at Deathmask’s hair, tangling his fingers in the silvery locks, pushing up into the wet heat of his mouth. He gave a long moan and spread his legs further when he felt a finger breach his entrance._

 _Aphrodite laughed, playing with Shura nipples_ _’_ _._

_“See? You’re liking it so much. And you were so reluctant to share our bed,” he said._

_Shura bit his lower lip and shook his head. It was good. They were so good, but…he hadn’t done it for them…_

_“Aioros, I want…,” he panted, feeling his climax close. “I want Aioros…”_

_“How cute,” said Aphrodite. “The protagonist of a doomed love story. Ah, you’re just too adorable. Poor thing, Deathmask give it to him…”_

_Deathmask pulled away from him, but inserted a third finger into Shura._

_“But I wanted to play with him some more,” he teased, moving his fingers inside him until Shura cried out and arched on the bed. “I found it.”_

_“Don’t be mean,” chastised him Aphrodite, and gave a quick kiss to_ _his necromancer_ _lips’._

 _Deathmask snickered. “Fine, let’s get the real act going,” he said, pulling his fingers out of Shura_ _’_ _s body and reaching out to give him an open mouthed kiss. Shura gave in, embracing Deathmask’s warm body, and found that a new scent reached him. A sent of graveyard dirt, or ancient dust, of death._

_He pulled away from him, feeling like he was falling somewhere dark and deep. His heart raced and for a moment he felt like he was being lowered into his own grave. He opened his eyes, blinking to try and focus, but the shapes around him were blurry and soft._

_“Don’t be afraid. It’ll work soon enough,” said the necromancer’s voice, sounding far. But there was something strange about his voice. It sounded deeper. Familiar._

_Shura groaned and shook his head. The room around him came into focus, but the colors seemed sharper, brighter, somehow more real. He looked up, and saw Deathmask kneeling between his legs, stroking his length. But he seemed different. Strange._

_“Let go,” he said, his voice deepening even more._

_Shura blinked, and Aioros was staring down at him with a wicked smile in his lips. Shura’s heart raced and he reached out to caress his face. It felt warm and alive._

_“Aioros…,” he whispered._

_“Shura, Shura…it’s been a long time, uh?” said Aioros, pulling him closer and kissing his cheeks. “You’re so cute when you cry, but why don’t I make you feel good instead?”_

_Aioros pushed into him, making him flinch when he breached his entrance. But Shura barely noticed the pain, entranced in the sight of_ _his love_ _above him, as gorgeous and alive as he had been that last time, ten years ago. He stared at his face, at his eyes. Everything was the same._

_He spread his legs further, taking him deeper. He draped his arms around his shoulders, holding on to him._

_“Ah, Aioros…,” moaned Shura, threading his fingers through_ _the man's dark_ _curls. “I’ve missed you so much…”_

_“Master Shura, you can be so cute,” said Aioros, kissing his neck._

_“No. He…he called me his swordmaster. He…he called me little Shura.”_

_Aioros laughed. “Yes, yes. Whatever you wish for, my little Shura. This night I’ve come back just for you,” he said, and kissed him._

_Shura moaned, feeling_ _Aioros_ _’ tongue inside his mouth, his length deep into his body. He wanted more. He wanted it all._

_“Harder…Aioros, take me harder…,” he begged, pulling him closer._

_“You’re so tight. I didn’t think you would be this delicious,” said_ _Aioros,_ _thrusting harder, faster, hitting that spot inside that made him scream._

_Shura’s eyes rolled back when he felt his climax overtake him and he cried out his love for Aioros as he came._

_As he laid panting in the bed, trying to regain his breath, he thought that it had been years since he’d felt such complete pleasure in sex._

_Someone else climbed on the bed, but when Shura opened his eyes, he just saw Aioros above him, giving him a sweet smile._

_“Ah, Shura,” said Aioros, leaning down to whisper in_ _his_ _ear. “The greatest of all mercenaries. The cruel_ _est_ _and merciless. Who would have thought that you had such a deep love hidden in your heart? Such a lovely, tormented soul.”_

_Shura pulled him closer, embracing him._

_“No,” he said. “Tonight, I am a knight. I am your knight.”_

_Aioros gave a soft laugh. “As you wish,” he said, holding Shura’s hand._

_That night they both took_ _their_ _pleasure from Shura’s body. Again and again, all through the night. And Shura let them gladly, often even begged them to do him again. To hold him and take him again, any way they pleased._

_Because to him it was always Aioros with him._

* * *

Shura took a deep breath, thinking how many times he had gone back to the prince’s chamber. Begging for just another night with his love. And as long as he kept fighting for Aphrodite’s cause, he would always indulge him. Always called him by the same names that Aioros used to call him. Always pretending for him.

His vision blurred, his eyes filling with tears when he thought that the real Aioros was right behind him. What would he think if he found out what he’d done? The men he had laid with just to enjoy a lie for a night…

A tear fell down his cheek, rolling down into Aioros’ hand.

“Shura!” hissed Aioros, pulling him closer against his chest, in a position that now Shura couldn’t see out the opening of the door. “This…you can’t be serious. Were you really so in love with Milo?”

Shura tried to shake his head, thankful for the way Aioros’ hand was still covering his mouth. He wouldn’t trust his own voice right then.

“You have to let him go,” said Aioros, his voice the same as when he used to give firm orders to Shura, ten years ago. “He has clearly fallen in love with Camus. I’m sorry if this is sad for you, but…you really have to give up on him.”

Shura shook his head again. He wasn’t crying because of Milo. He had never thought of Milo in that way, even if he was still scandalized that he had decided to marry some random ice mage in the span of a few days.

“Look at you, you’ve become a mess because of him,” whispered Aioros, pulling him to the back of the closet, letting his free hand trail down Shura’s chest while still covering his mouth even harder. Shura gave a sharp intake of breath. Aioros’ touch sent shivers of pleasure right down to his groin. “I’ll give you release now, but stop moving so much, or I’ll…My body might start to react.”

Aioros palmed Shura’s groin through his clothes and another tear fell down Shura’s cheek as he felt the last of his self-control slip from him. _‘I’ll give you release’_ what a dream! What a nightmare! He relaxed against his hold, not caring about how he could feel the other’s groin against his ass.

“Hush, please. Don’t cry for him…,” begged Aioros, holding him harder. His hand setting on Shura’s waist. He stopped covering his mouth, instead holding him close. “Sometimes…things don’t work out. But it’ll be fine. Don’t you want Milo to be happy? Even if…it’s not with you?”

Shura rolled his eyes. He tried to speak, but the knot on his throat stopped him. He tried again.

“I…hate him…,” he said finally. And he really hated Milo at that moment. Trapped in a closet with the love of his life and trying to pretend like he didn’t want him to have his way with him. How had things ended up like this?

“Shura…There’s no use in hating. Ah, you were so lovely back then. You’ll feel better about this tomorrow. You’re just a mess right now. See? You’re not thinking straight,” said Aioros, his hands roaming over Shura’s chest, then going lower, to the front of his pants. “This…I bet it’s painful.

“Aioros…”

“You’re still injured. Let me do it for you,” said Aioros, opening his pants. “I won’t tell Milo. It’s better if…he doesn’t know.”

Shura gasped when he felt his erection being taken out. He really was so hard that it was painful. All he wanted was for Aioros to get his hands around him. He groaned, feeling cold fingers on his length and Aioros covered his mouth again. 

“Shura! Stop! They’ll hear us. Ah, I’ll have to cover your mouth. This is for the best. And stop moving. Ugh, I’m…starting to react…”

And Shura groaned again when he felt Aioros growing hard against his ass.

“I think they’re gone, but the servants might hear us,” said Aioros, wrapping his hand and stroking him. Slowly at first, then faster, rougher. Shura pumped into his hand, throwing his head back and grinding against him. He wanted Aioros to just bend him over and take him. Rough, hard, quick. He needed it so much. He panted, opening his mouth. Aioros slipped his fingers inside his mouth and Shura sucked on him.

“Ah, Shura, you really…Are so affected by them.”

 _‘By you. I’m so affected by your touch. Your scent. Your very presence drives me mad…’_ Shura wanted to say, but he could only moan around the fingers in his mouth.

He finally felt Aioros grind against his ass, seeking friction as he pumped Shura’s cock harder, making him moan and whine against the wall. Shura’s eyes rolled back and with a moan he spilled himself all over Aioros’ hand, collapsing against him. Aioros held him up for a moment but Shura’s legs failed to hold him up and he slid down on the floor.

“Shura, are you ok? Was it enough?” asked Aioros in a hushed whisper.

Shura leaned against the wall. “Enough…yes…,” he drawled. He tried to think, but putting his thoughts in order seemed completely impossible.

Aioros knelt down next to him and combed some of Shura’s hair away from his face.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, holding his sword’s face.

Shura closed his eyes. “Good. Fine,” he said.

“Ah, that’s great. Can you move?”

Shura looked down. Despite the small light on the closet he could see the bulge in the archer pants’. He had felt it against him, and the memory made him lick his lips. He reached out with his left hand, tangling his fingers through Aioros wild curls, his other hand going to his thighs. He felt cold under his touch. So cold he should be shivering. But a fire still burned under Shura’s skin. He moved closer towards him.

“W-wait...Shura, someone’s going to find us,” whispered Aioros, moving away from him.

“You...you’re also…,” said Shura, his touch moving up those soft, cold thighs.

Aioros pulled even further away, until he lost his balance and fell on his back over the floor. Shura crawled above him, entranced by his agitated breath, by his moist lips and bright eyes that seemed to have acquired a sharper glint than he remembered from their youth.

He was finally here. The real one.

Shura leaned down to kiss him.

“No! Shura! I’m serious, we need to get out of here!” hissed Aioros, moving his face away from him and pushing against his chest.

Shura snapped out of his daze and realized what he was doing. He pulled away, straightening his clothes and redressing himself.

“I-I’m sorry Aioros. I thought…,” said Shura, incapable of looking at the other’s face anymore, his own burning with shame. 

Of course, what had he been thinking? How could he have been so weak to his own desires?

Aioros’ soft touch fell on his shoulder.

“If Camus finds us here he will be seriously angry. It’s too dangerous to stay. Come on let’s go back down,” he said, voice as kind and caring as always.

Shura swallowed his shame and nodded. It was useless anyway. Milo was definitely not coming back. He would have to storm the citadel on his own, with whatever was left of his forces.

He followed Aioros out, and they hurried towards the grand staircase. The knights depicted in the glittering threads of the carpet seemed to stare at Shura in disgust. As if they could see his shame and condemned him. They ran down the steps, when Aioros froze in place, and Shura crashed against him.

He stumbled backwards, holding on to the railing to not fall down the staircase.

“I knew you would become a nuisance,” said Camus’ icy voice, and Shura stared up to find him floating in front of them, blocking the way. He tilted his head at them, tapping his lips with the tip of his finger, as if pondering what he would do with them.

“We’re sorry,” pleaded Aioros, bowing down. “Please forgive us, it was a mistake.”

“Silence,” ordered Camus, waving a hand at them. Shura felt a wave of cold hit him in the face and he stumbled backwards, falling on the steps. The cold clawed at his chest, filtering inside him, freezing his throat. He clawed at his neck, trying to tear out the cold that crawled inside him.

“Shura!” cried Aioros, and Shura noticed a thin layer of frost over him cracking and crumbling when he turned to look at him. Then he turned back towards Camus. “Stop! Let him go!”

“I do not take orders from the kind of you,” said Camus dismissively, and with another wave of his hand, a blast of freezing wind hit them, throwing Shura against the railing.

But Aioros held strong, and didn’t even move, just braced against the ice, then shook it off.

“Camus, I do not want to fight. I want to leave. But if you would rather fight me, then fine,” he said, clenching his fist.

“Aioros!” called Aioria from the steps below.

“Do you intend to fight me at the same time?” asked Camus, a freezing whirlwind forming below him, making his hair float like tendrils of ice.

“I don’t! I’m serious, we just want to leave! Aioria go back down.”

“But-!”

“Go back!”

“No!”

Camus sighed and an ice wall formed behind him, shutting Aioria away from them.

“How annoying. You will wake Milo up,” he said.

“It is not our fate to battle against each other,” said Aioros, taking a fighting stance. “Release Shura. Let us go. Destiny approaches, and I would rather not waste any more time in senseless fighting.”

Camus regarded him in silence. The whirlwind under him vanishing. 

Inside Shura, the cold spread from his chest, down his torso and through his limbs. His vision turned white. He tried to call for Aioros, but his voice was frozen. 

His vision turned white.


	6. Chapter 6

Shura dreamed.

He dreamt of a place that he knew didn’t exist. Of a sanctuary yet to be built, with twelve houses built to guard the power of the stars. 

In his dream, he guarded the tenth house, and he felt the power of the stars coursing through his body.

Aioros guarded the ninth.

In Shura’s dream, he still loved him. He still desired him. He still murdered him.

With his own hands, sharp as a blade, cutting him down, with Aioros’ blood flowing down his fingers, stealing his last breath and his last plead to be heard.

In his dream, he succeeded in murdering him.

And his regret went on.

Forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider leaving a comment or a like. It would mean a lot to me.


	7. Chapter 7

Shura gasped, jolting awake from his nightmare. 

Strong arms held him and pulled him against someone.

“Shura, Shura, it’s me. Airos,” he said, and Shura looked up into bright green eyes. Those eyes that still held that strange sharpness in them, the only thing he couldn’t recognize in him. 

He clung on to him, gasping for breath, still shaken by his dream. Still feeling as if the power of the stars pulsated through his veins.

“Aioros?” he asked, barely realizing that he had spoken.

“Yes,” said Aioros, pushing Shura’s hair away from his face, still with that easy smile  on  that Shura loved so much. “Did you have a nightmare?”

Shura looked around, noticing they seemed to be inside the same carriage that had brought them to Camus’ castle. On the opposite seat, Aioria glared at him with eyes filled with disgust. He moved away from Aioros’ hold and sat up.

“What happened? Where are we?” he asked.

Aioros huffed and rolled his eyes.

“I told you Camus would be angry, and he was. He was furious. But, I managed to calm him down and convince him to let us go. So we’re now going back to your camp. We should be arriving now, in fact. You were asleep for a long time,” he said.

Shura held his head. He felt a headache coming, and he still felt slightly dizzy.

“What you said...About destiny, what was that?” he asked, trying to remember what had happened before he lost consciousness. But it was all a blur of white and cold and dread in his head.

“Hmmm? What are you talking about? Is that what you dreamt about?” asked Aioros, moving closer to look at Shura’s face.

Shura grunted, trying to remember what had happened. The visions of his dream mixed with the visions of Camus’ ice castle. The sensation of ice clawing into his chest entwined with the feeling of Aioros’ warm blood flowing down his arms. Both visions equally real in his mind.

“You’re turning pale, maybe you should try to sleep again,” said Aioros, pulling him closer.

The image of him laying on the floor under Shura, pushing him away, flashed through his mind and he pulled away from Aioros.

Aioria moved to look out the window of the carriage. 

“We’re almost there,” he said.

Shura looked out too, seeing the unending night sky covering them. In the horizon, surrounding the citadel on the hill, all four night towers rose to the sky, blocking out the sun. 

It was already a dangerous mission to try and take a vampire’s castle. Much less one that had night towers.

“Camus  agreed would help us,”  declared  Aioros, moving closer against Shura to look out the window too. “He said he would send some of his ice warriors, but that you had to attack tomorrow.”

“Hmmm, tomorrow? Why so fast?” asked Shura.

“He said he had things to do, and couldn’t spare much more time to help us. Also...he was still pretty angry…”

Shura grunted in annoyance, and was about to ask what Camus’ “help” would entail, when he noticed a few carriages painted in pale blue near the edges of his camp. As they approached he also could see standards with red roses depicted in them, and dread rose up in his throat again.

“Shura? Is something wrong?” asked Aioros in a worried whisper.

Shura didn’t bother to answer, just opened the door of the carriage when it stopped and jumped out. 

“Stay here. Don’t go out before I come back for you,” he ordered, and closed the door. Then he ran towards where the tallest standard fluttered in the wind.

Prince Aphrodite was not in an audience with Shura’s lieutenant, as Shura had at first feared, but they simply strolled through the tents. The prince’s necromancer noticed him first, and waved at him.

“Hey, look! Shura’s back!” said Deathmask “Just in time!”

Aphrodite turned around, and gave him a sharp grin when he noticed him.

“Ah, Shura. Great timing as always,” he said, flipping back a long lock of pale blue hair. “What is this nonsense of ice storms? And then you were kidnapped? What?”

Shura took a deep breath. “It’s been crazy, but I have it under control now.”

“Under control? All your shields are down! That weird mist around seems to be keeping the vampires away but you won’t last a week like this,” said Aphrodite, waving at the ruined towers of the shields.

“I’m attacking tomorrow. And besides, this is considered part of the white lands, it won’t affect your borders.”

Aphrodite rolled his eyes. “I would like to bring my borders back to their original form. Which includes that castle. I’m sure you know I didn’t let you go on with this insane ordeal just out of the goodness of my heart.”

“I know. I know, it’s just...a lot of things have happened. But I’m attacking tomorrow. And I’ll get the castle  back ,” said Shura, just wanting to be over with the conversation.

Aphrodite reached out to pat at Shura’s chest, straightening the creases on his tunic.

“You look like hell. Ah, if you weren’t the best at this, I would be worried. Now, get rid of those bats, declare the borders back to their original form, and you get the whole citadel to yourself, alright?” he said, his fingers moving up Shura’s chest, over his shoulders, until he draped his arms around his neck. “I’ve been very generous with you, and I can be even more generous. Now, tell me the truth. Can you take back this castle without Milo? I know he disappeared.”

Shura rolled his eyes. “Milo is…”

“It can be done without him,” said Aioros behind them.

Aphrodite let go of Shura and looked over his shoulder at Aioros. Shura moved to block his view.

“I have a new strategy,” said Shura.

“Who’s that?”asked Aphrodite.

Deathmask grabbed Aioros’ arm and pulled him in closer for Aphrodite to take a good look at him. Shura hands '  twitched as he kept his rage down seeing how rough the necromancer was with Aioros.

“It doesn’t matter,” muttered Shura.

But Aphrodite could read in his face how affected he was.

“My name is Aioros. Shura and I knew each other a long while ago,” said Aioros, completely innocent to the fact that Shura had laid in bed with Aphrodite and Deathmask while crying his name.

The prince and the necromancer stared at Shura in disbelief.

“He...wasn’t dead…,” said Shura, feeling  more  stupid than he had ever felt in his life.

“Well, that is fantastic!” said Aphrodite, turning on his brightest and sweetest smile for Aioros. The sight of it sent a feeling of danger flooding through Shura’s body. “Shura must be very happy about that!”

“Really? He told you about me?” asked  Aioros .

Aphrodite threw an arm around his shoulders, pulling him closer, and Shura wanted to kill him.

“Of course he did. He cared about you a lot,” said the Prince. “In fact, I bet he must be very worried about you being here in such a dangerous place, after finding out that you’re not really dead. Why don’t you come with me? My castle is a much safer place.”

“Uhmm, I don’t think that would be good…,” started Aioros, trying to pull away from Aphrodite. “I still have to care for my brother…”

“He can come too! You will both be coming with me, yes.”

Shura finally realized Aphrodite’s intentions, and stepped forward, grabbing Aioros and pulling him away from Aphrodite, moving to stand between them.

“He was living near the citadel. He’ll help me get into the castle,” said Shura, with an air of finality.

Aphrodite crossed his arms, giving a mischievous look.

“That sounds too dangerous for him. What if something happens? Wouldn’t you feel better if he was away from danger?”

Shura’s resolve faltered for a moment. It was true, after all. Finally having Aioros back, he couldn’t stop worrying about losing him again. As if he could vanish with the light of the morning like all of Aphrodite illusions ' did.

“I will be fine. I’m a warrior just like him,” said Aioros, stepping past Shura. “And I want to help him.”

Aphrodite laughed. “Awww, you’re adorable!” he said, pinching Aioros’ cheek. “I can see why he is so fond of you. Fine, fine, I’m too weak against stories with a happy ending so you two stay together. I don’t have the heart to separate you. Now, just get rid of those damn bats and get my territories  back , alright?”

Shura nodded, and Aphrodite clapped, delighted. But behind him, Deathmask kept staring at Aioros, seemingly curious about him. Shura worried that he was going to try something, but in the end Deathmask just laughed and followed Aphrodite back to their carriages.

“He didn’t seem very nice,” said Aioros, while he and Shura watched the Prince and his necromancer leave through the shadows of the unending night. “I didn’t really like him.”

Shura raised an eyebrow at that. 

“Really? I think that’s the worst thing I’ve heard you say about anyone. And you just met him for a few minutes,” he  explained .

“It looked like he made you uncomfortable.”

“Hmmm, not really. But he’s dangerous sometimes. I was worried about that,” said Shura. Then he turned to face Aioros. “And you. I told you to not get out of the carriage!”

Aioros gasped. “The carriage! I left Aioria there!” he cried, and ran back to look for his brother.


	8. Chapter 8

Shura sent out word to his men that they would be attacking  the next day  at dawn. And after reviewing the maps with Aioros and Aioria, as well as coordinating his different attack groups, he had a feast prepared and set out for everyone. Even the refugees from the citadel, who as well as Aioros had been hiding in the nearby caves.

“Sir? Even them?” asked Shura’s lieutenant, while they were finishing the plans in his tent. “The next rations delivery will not come for three days.”

Shura waved his worries away and served himself another glass of wine.

“We’ll need every single man and woman available. If they can hold a sword then feed them, arm them, and put them to help somewhere. We’re thinking there must be twenty vampires there, but...It might be more. Way more…”

His lieutenant nodded, bowed, and took his leave.

Shura stayed in his tent. It was late now, and tiredness was starting to seep into his bones. He thought of going to check back on Aioros and Aioria. No matter how much he had tried to keep him away from Aphrodite’s claws, he still couldn’t feel comfortable having Aioros go back to fighting. 

No matter what he claimed, it took no more than a single look at him for anyone to see that Aioros had a long time ago ceased to be a warrior. He looked thinner and paler than Shura remembered him to be. He had probably settled into the simple daily life of any other peasant, when he had run away from the south and from Shura’s blade.

The memory of having murdered him and the images from the dream he’d had came back to him, and Shura served himself another glass of wine.

He’d sent all his men to have dinner, but he himself couldn’t stomach a single bite of food. The memories were far too much for him to try and eat.

On the table, among the plates of food that he couldn’t will himself to touch, the ice mirror glittered against the light of the torches on the corners of the tent. 

Shura served himself another glass of wine, and opened the mirror. It felt deathly cold in his hand.

The white fog within the glass spread through, spiraling from somewhere within.

“Milo,” called Shura, wondering if it would work again. He bit his lower lip and took another sip of the wine.

“Oy, Shura? Did you call me?” came Milo’s voice. The mist turned the whole glass white, and a moment later, Milo’s face appeared.

“Of course it was me. Who else would it be?!”

“Hmmm, well, the kids sometimes do,” said Milo.

“Kids?” 

“You left too fast and I couldn’t introduce them to you. But Camus has children. They’re really adorable, actually. Even if they were the ones who kidnapped me in the beginning.”

“What?! So you really were kidnapped.”

“Eh, technicalities. Anyway, what happened? Camus said you had to leave because you were going to attack tomorrow.”

“Yes. He promised five thousand men. Do you think he’ll really come through?”

Milo nodded. “Sure! Sure! That’s nothing for him. He has thousands of ice spirits and he can make ice puppets too. I’ll tell him to send more. You’ll need as many as you can get to storm the citadel. But don’t worry, everything will be fine. And after you get the citadel, you can come to my wedding and we can celebrate!” 

“Milo, for the last time, marrying some ice wizard is a terrible idea!” 

“You just don’t understand because you don’t remember the future. You might be able to remember later on. Camus says that Aioros remembers, you should ask him.”

“What are you even talking about?!”

Two cold hands fell on Shura shoulders ' .

“Hi Milo!” said Aioros, leaning over his shoulder to look at the mirror. “So you’re getting married soon? No wonder Camus said he would be busy the next few days. Congratulations!”

“Thank you! Keep safe tomorrow and don’t worry, I’ll make sure Camus helps you!”

Aioros waved goodbye at him and Milo’s image faded from the glass.

“Were you still worried about him?” asked Aioros, letting go of Shura shoulders ' and walking around to look down at him.

“I wanted to make sure Camus wouldn’t leave me stranded against a castle full of vampires with only a few hundred men,” said Shura, grabbing his glass and standing up. The world tilted around him and he had to hold on to the table. 

Aioros frowned at him.

“You’re drunk,” he said, holding on to him. “Come, lay down on the bed.”

“I’m not. I just drank too fast. Just...need to sit down for a moment. Stupid Milo, he’s trusting Camus too much. Marriage so fast? He’s gone insane! ‘Remember the future’, what kind of madness is that??” 

Aioros shrugged and helped him to sit down on the edge of the bed. 

“Well, if he’s in love I don’t see the problem. Camus seemed a bit socially inept, but otherwise fine,” he said. 

“Are you serious? He’s barely human! And Milo just met him and he wants to marry him! After the battle I have to go back and see if I can get some sense into him.” 

Aioros took the glass away from him and set it on the bedside table.

“After the battle, you should just leave him alone to marry Camus. He’ll be happier that way,” he said.

Shura huffed and threw his hands in the air.

“Why am I the only one who sees that Camus is a danger?!” he cried in desperation.

“Because you’re far too paranoid. You should be more trustful.” 

“Trust more? See, that is what annoys me about you,” said Shura, glaring up at Aioros. “You have to stop trusting people so much. I know neither of us is a knight anymore like we were in the south, but you have to stop bumbling around trusting everyone and everything as if there were no dangers around!” 

Aioros sighed and passed a hand through Shura’s hair.

“You’re drunk. Go to bed now. You need to sleep.” 

“I’m serious Aioros. One of these days, someone is going to really hurt you,” said Shura, the words  _ ‘Just like I did’  _ stuck in his throat, yearning to escape. His regret, his pain, his loss...all those emotions that he carried close to his heart came roaring up at the sight of Aioros looking down at him as if nothing had happened. As if he had never lifted his sword to kill him.

“Shura, you’re worrying too much and you’re all wrong” laughed Aioros. 

Shura grabbed Aioros arms '  and threw him down on the bed, holding him down.

“You won’t understand until it happens to you,” he grunted, and kissed him. Angry. Loving. Despairing. 

Aioro lips ' were cold against h is  , and he froze underneath him, not even pushing him away. Shura’s heart raced in his chest. He had him. He finally had him. 

He moaned against  those desired  lips, his hands roaming down his chest as he settled between his legs. Shura kissed down his neck, ground against his hips, wanting to feel him again.

“Sh-Shura, what are you doing?” asked Aioros, gasping for breath under Shura’s touch.

“You shouldn’t have trusted me Aioros,” whispered Shura against the skin of Aioros’ collarbone, his hands going lower and lower, grasping at Aioros’ ass and spreading his legs, making him gasp “If I could try to kill you, I could do anything to you.”

Aioros whimpered, shivering at the sensations through his body.

“No. Shura, no. You...you were always so righteous. You always did the right thing,” he said, grasping at Shura shoulders ' , trying to hold him away.

Shura scoffed a laugh and grabbed at Aioros’ tunic, trying to pull it away.

“Righteous? Once I lifted my sword against you, there was no turning back. There was no righteousness in me. Don’t you see? Don’t you see that I’ve become a monster?” he said, and tore open Aioros’ shirt.

Aioros gasped again, trying to squirm away from him. Shura kissed him again, forcing his way inside his mouth tasting him, and Aioros moved his face away, covering his mouth. Shura stopped, finally seeing that Aioros kept pulling away. He tried to regain his breath, and cold dread washed over him. He moved away from Aioros.

“I...I’m sorry…,” he whispered, releasing him.

Aioros pulled away, covered himself, and ran out.

Shura looked at him leaving in a daze, feeling like the illusion of him had vanished among the shadows.

Like he had lost him yet again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider leaving a comment or a like. It would mean a lot to me.


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning before the attack, Aioria came into Shura’s tent. The sight of his heavy green eyes sent a shiver of dread down Shura’s back.

“Have you seen Aioros?” he asked.

“Uh? No. Since yesterday, actually. When was the last time you saw him?”

“Also last night, but-”

Aioros came into the tent. “Here you are,” he said upon seeing Aioria. “I told you to stay in our tent. Did you come here to pick a fight with Shura?”

Aioria frowned. “I was just looking for you!”

“Go back to our tent. I’ll go get you. Don’t go running around,” ordered Aioros, pointing  at  the door.

“But Aioros!”

“Go. I’m serious.”

Aioria huffed and dragged his feet while going out the door. He looked still very young, even though he should be a little over eighteen, according to what Shura remembered. There was still that sharp darkness to his eyes that could also be seen in Aioros’ eyes, but otherwise he had retained that innocent look of youth.

“Sorry, he’s been very moody since Kanon chased us out of our home,” said Aioros, giving Shura that same easy smile he always had. That same calm that said that nothing had changed.

But the regret still burned in Shura’s stomach.

“Aioros, what I did yesterday…I’m…,” he started, searching for the words. Searching for something to say that would express his deep his regret ran.

“Focus, general. You have a castle to recover,” said Aioros, walking up to him and straightening his armor. 

“Does your forgiveness have no end? Will you just forgive anything  from me?” asked Shura, longing to reach out and hold Aioros hands '

Yet he did not move.

Aioros looked at him with eyes full of something that looked so much like love. But Shura no longer let himself hope that it really was such an emotion.

“I wish you would forgive yourself more.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider leaving a like of a comment. It would mean a lot to me.


	10. Chapter 10

The cold arrived as soon as the sun would have gone up, had the night towers in the citadel not been covering the sky in perpetual night.

Shura checked his pocket watch. A fancy device that prince Aphrodite had given him once. 

Indeed, the sun would be rising now.

How he missed the sun.

Looking above, the top of the night towers seemed to glare down at him with the green flames that burned at their cusps.

Shura closed his watch. The sound of horns rose up around him, a wave of howls and shrieks that caused the earth to vibrate under his feet.

The cold intensified, covering everything in a fine layer of white. His men kept sounding the horns, while next to him, his lieutenant held the ice mirror open. 

Small shadows appeared atop the walls of the citadel. In a blink, Shura noticed the silhouette of Kanon appearing between the others, his long hair fluttering in the wind. For a moment, resentment flared in Shura’s heart at the thought that he still wouldn’t get his vengeance for Saga’s lies. He looked to the side, noticing Aioros nearby, his usual easy smile replaced by the look of determination that Shura remembered falling in love with.

He locked his love and his longing deep in his heart, and looked straight ahead, noticing Kanon’s shadow vanishing in a blur of movement.

He lifted his sword on instinct and blocked a claw that appeared before him.

“Kanon,” he muttered.

“I should have taken you long ago,” growled Kanon. “You have become too much of a nuisance.”

Kanon vanished as an arrow went through the space he occupied. All around them, vampires descended, rushing from the citadel onto the open space, just as Shura had wanted.

“Are you alright?” called Aioros, loading his bow and firing again towards the vampires that flew among them.

Shura nodded, then turned to look up as bright white figures materialized among his men. The sharp feeling of cold filled his nose as rows and rows of white arose from the frozen earth, moving towards the citadel. 

Flying above, near the entrance, Kanon looked at the wave of white rushing towards the sealed gates, his face contorted in horror. He looked back at Shura, eyes burning with hatred and pointed at him.

“Him! Bring me his head!” he roared

Shura sprinted forward, smirking. Behind him Aioros’ voice calling out for him faded among the screams of the dying and the shrill cries of the vampires. 

He was now a target.

Perfect.

He ran through the rows of white beings storming the castle. Taller than two men, they made for the most ideal cover, as approached the gate.

Tendrils of darkness descended all around, melting those white beings that they touched. 

Shura allowed him a single laugh. There were just too many of Camus puppets '  for them to destroy. While there may be hundreds of vampires in the castle, Shura had just as many men, and for each of them, Camus had created dozens. Even the gate itself-

A great shrill sound of crumpling iron and crushed stone exploded ahead of him, and though Shura couldn’t see anything through the wall of white ahead of him, he knew the gate had been breached. 

He kept running, following the white beings as they poured into the citadel.

A couple of vampires descended on him, but the white puppets surrounding Shura easily wiped them away before they ran through the main court inside the citadel. 

Shura held his sword harder, eyeing the central night tower from the top of the castle. Beyond the black clouds whirling around it, he thought he could see the glimmer of the far away stars. As if he could feel their light coursing through his veins.

As if one of those ever bright constellations shone just for him.

Kanon grabbed his neck from behind, his sharp claws piercing through Shura’s neck and with his other hand kept Shura’s arm with the sword firmly down.

“I should have heeded the rumors. Master Shura, who can bring down from their thrones even the most powerful kings. Who would have thought it was all true? Ah, but I’ll get to keep your head and display it, even if I am chased from this castle,” whispered Kanon against Shura’s ear, then he shrieked and let go of Sura as something hit him from behind.

Shura turned, kicked him away, and slashed across his chest with his sword, leaving a bright red line from his shoulder to his hip. Kanon roared at him, his voice an inhuman growl as he bent over, clutching at the gash on his chest. On his back, Shura noticed a white arrow, one of the kind he had given Aioros before the battle. He looked up ahead, behind Kanon, searching for Aioros among the throng of white puppets and warriors pouring through the gate.

A white arrow flew over Shura’s shoulder, hitting Kanon in the shoulder. Then another, near the wound in his chest. 

Shura turned, and saw Aioros running  towards him. Then he turned towards Kanon, and saw he had vanished.

“Up there!” yelled Aioros, and fired another arrow.

Shura looked up to where the arrow had flown, and saw Kanon flying away from the citadel. Aioros’ last arrow had hit him in the back, slowing him down a bit. But he was already beyond the citadel’s walls.

“Let’s chase him!” yelled Aioria, running towards them.

Shura pursed his lips. As much as he would love to chase him, he was too far for them to reach.

“No,” said Aioros, lowering his bow. He then pointed out to various shadows flying away from the citadel, their forms delineated in a soft glow by the green fires of the night towers. “Look, they’re fleeing. Let’s secure the castle. It looks like we won.”

“But Aioros!” cried his brother.

“No. It’s enough. Shura, are you alright? Did he bite you?” he asked, moving closer to examine the general’s neck.

Shura reached up and realized the wounds had been bleeding a lot, but he had barely noticed the pain from them.

“I’m fine, just some scratches,” he said, wiping the blood away with his sleeve. He turned towards the castle. The night tower above it, still vibrating with dark energy. He would not feel safe until he had taken them all down and could see the sun shining again. “Let’s secure the castle and bring those towers down.”

He ran towards the entrance, and found both the outer gates and the main entrance broken down. His lieutenant waited next to a pile of debris near the main  doors , holding the open ice mirror in his hand.

“Master Shura!” he called, holding the mirror out to him. “King Camus wishes to speak with you.”

Shura grunted in annoyance. He noticed the ice puppets around had stopped moving. They stood as still as ice sculptures among the people and the crumbled buildings.

The cold, too, had started to fade.

“Camus?” asked Shura, holding the mirror closer while still walking into the castle, sword held firmly in his hand. The insides of the castle seemed fine. Some of it a mess, but without signs of too much destruction. 

“Hmph. Master Shura, I have surveyed the developments of the battle, and it seems you have prevailed,” said Camus’ icy voice, but his image did not appear on the white mist within the mirror. “I believe you will not need my assistance anymore.”

“I still need to bring down those night towers,” said Shura.

“I will be taking my leave now, then. Milo sends his regards.”

And with that, the remains of the cold faded. The white puppets vanishing into nothing more than snowflakes in the wind.

“Jackass,” muttered Shura, and pocketed the mirror.

“We have secured most of the castle, Master Shura,” said his lieutenant. “How do you want to proceed with the destruction of the towers?”

“What is all this stuff?” wondered Aioria, giving a look of distaste to the plain black furniture of the hall. He made a noise of disgust when he saw a few corpses strewn over a long table, with clear bite wounds all over. “Savages…”

Aioros waved away his comment and ran towards a nearby staircase. 

“Come, let’s see our bedroom!” he said, motioning for them to follow him.

“Aioros wait! I have to organize the control of the castle!” called Shura, but Aioros didn’t listen to him, so he followed him up the stairs, his lieutenant and Aioria running after him.

They arrived at a grand room with black curtains over the windows and a grand bed with black sheets on it. Shura strolled towards a dresser by the bed, where he saw jewelry glittering against the light of the candles on the walls. He noticed a necklace of golden filigree with little diamonds and emeralds in it.

“Hmmm, this is very nice,” he mused, and pocketed it. He would need to make sure all of the most valuable stuff wouldn’t be pillaged by his men or any of the refugees.

“So tacky,” said Aioria, walking into the room. He walks towards a chest by the corner. “Where are our things? What did he do with all our stuff?”

Aioros opened one of the closets and looked among the clothes. He pulled out a great wooden chest with a big iron lock in it. With a twist of his bare hand, he crushed the lock and tore it away, the metal crumbling under his fingers. Shura gasped at seeing him do that, but Aioros didn’t notice him and merely opened the chest and rummaged inside.

“Ah, here they are. I think he packed our things away. We’ll have to look for any storage places,” he said.

“Bastard,” muttered Aioria.

Shura blinked. In his mind, pieces started falling together into a pattern. The inhuman strength, the pale skin, the gaunt expression, the dark sharpness to Aioros’ eyes. He motioned a sign for his lieutenant to blow the horn he carried to signal for danger.

But Aioria was faster.

He flew across the room and tore the lieutenant’s arm off his body, throwing it aside. Then he grabbed his head, pulled it close, and bit on his neck.

Shura sprinted out of the room. Behind him he could hear Aioros’ voice.

“What are you doing?! Don’t do that here, you’re ruining the floor!”

With his heart pounding in his chest, Shura reached the main entrance, and saw it blocked by five of the refugees, their mouths dripping blood, having the same darkness to their eyes as Aioros. He held his sword firm in his hand at the sight of them.

“Shura? Shura, please come back,” called Aioros behind him.

Dread filled him, and his heart jumped, racing in terror. Turning away from the main entrance, Shura ran through another door that led to a music hall with a piano in the center. He looked around, searching for the exit.

“Please don’t be afraid,” said Aioros, materializing out of the shadows to sit on the piano. “Come here, I’ll explain everything.” 

Shura ran away through the nearest door. Outside, he heard more cries of death, more vampire shrieks, even more than before. He went through a hallway and arrived at a library. 

“Now you’re just being unreasonable” said Aioros’ voice, echoing from all around him, a disembodied sound that seemed to vibrate straight into Shura’s chest.

He ran across the room towards the only door he could see and grabbed the handle.

Aioros slammed him against the door, holding him in place by restraining his wrists. The cold touch of his skin made terror flare within Shura’s body.

“You will only get yourself hurt if you kept trying to run away,” whispered Aioros, his breath tickling the skin of Shura’s ear. “Now calm down and let me explain.”

“Explain? You’re a vampire!” yelled Shura, fighting back tears

Aioros turned him around. The weak glamour that he’d worn had faded, and when he smiled at him, Shura noticed his sharp fangs and how unnatural his pale complexion seemed against his tanned skin.

“You must be tired,” said Aioros with his usual easy and calm smile. “I’ll take it from here. You need to lay down.”

Shura drew a breath to retort, but the shadows under Aioros feet moved, shifting and moving, rising from the floor in tendrils around them. 

The world turned black, and he felt himself falling into an abyss. He lost his breath, almost asphyxiating for a second, before the world cleared around him and he fell on his back into something soft. He shook his head and looked around, noticing he was back in the main bedroom that Aioros had claimed was his.

“Aioria could you give us a moment? Go make sure that all our guests are comfortable. And take that away from here,” asked Aioros.

With a last look of annoyance at Shura, Aioria obeyed and left, dragging the corpse of the man he’d killed behind him.

Shura scrambled to get off the bed, but tendrils of darkness from within the shadows wrapped around his arms and pulled him back, tying him to the headboard of the bed.

“Bastard, you were using me all along,” grunted Shura, fighting against the bindings keeping him  still . “You wanted me to take the castle back and then you were going to betray me!” 

Aioros sighed and sat down next to him on the edge of the bed.

“Now, that’s a bit too much. We just wanted our home back. Ah, Kanon really caught me off guard. Even if he wasn’t as strong as me, he was much faster that anyone I had ever seen. And I knew fighting him head on to recover the castle would only lead to too many losses for us,” he reached out to caress the side of Shura’s face. “It was a real blessing when you appeared, army in tow. And then Camus wanting to help us as long as I kept you away from Milo, how could I be so lucky? It was fantastic! Not even a single loss for my people!” 

“Your vampires,” muttered Shura. 

“Don’t be so angry. I didn’t want to trick you but it was necessary,” said Aioros, moving into the bed, to straddle Shura’s legs. “Ah, and you almost caught me. When you kissed me, I knew it would all be over if you noticed my fangs. I thought I was going to ruin everything just because I wanted you to take me so bad. Good thing you were too drunk by then or you would have seen through my glamour. But now, you can kiss me as much as you want.” 

Shura swallowed, his heart racing painfully in his chest when Aioros braced against his chest and lowered down to kiss his lips. Against himself, he couldn’t help moaning and letting him inside his mouth. Aioros laughed against his lips, tasting Shura’s mouth with his own tongue, cold with the touch of death.

When Aioros pulled away from him Shura felt dizzy, as if the world spun around him in the most delightful nightmare he had ever had.

Aioros took a deep breath and sighed, then laid down over Shura’s body.

“I’ve wanted to do that from the moment I saw you again. You have no idea how tempting you have been. Gods, I haven’t been able to change a single thing about myself, but you...you have become so ravishing,” he said, threading his fingers through Shura’s hair.

“…What has happened to you Aioros? You became a monster…,” whispered Shura.

Aioros sat back up, frowning. “I didn’t want this. Shura, even if you didn’t go look for me, How could I have survived the wounds from your sword? How could I survive falling from that cliff? I couldn’t. But there was something waiting at the bottom. Something that could let me continue living and caring for Aioria. He wouldn’t have survived without me, even if you were merciful towards him. What life could a traitor’s brother have? So when the vampire of the cliff offered to turn me in exchange for serving him, I agreed as long as I could still care for Aioria. It was as best a deal as I was going to get at that point. So yes, I have become a monster. Far more of one than you think you have. Can’t we just let each other shortcomings go? Can’t we just let it all go and start again in peace?” 

“…I am chained to your bed...” deadpanned Shura.

Aioros laughed.

“You don’t like being restrained in bed? I could have sworn otherwise,” he said with a smile, his nail tracing a path down Shura’s neck towards his chest until it reached the  top of his tunic and started cutting open the fabric. Shura felt his entire face burning. 

“Fine, just let me go. If you want to leave everything behind it’s fine with me, I’ll leave and won’t say anything about you to Aphrodite.” 

Aioros lifted an eyebrow at that, seemingly unconvinced.

“Why don’t you rest until tomorrow and we can talk then?” he said, and placed a quick kiss to Shura lips ' .

He left, leaving Shura tied to the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider leaving a like or comment. It would mean a lot to me.


	11. Chapter 11

Shura woke up the next day to the sound of Aioria slamming the door to the bedroom open.

“A-Aioria?” he whispered, blinking his sleepy eyes open, trying to remember where he was until the memories of the previous day came back to him.

“Aioros says you need to eat,” he declared , leaving a tray of food on the bedside table. Then he went to the closet and started rummaging around until he pulled out a simple black tunic and pants that he laid on the bed. “And here are some new clothes. You’re roughly my size, so they should fit. Otherwise, there are still some of Kanon clothes' you could try.”

The restraints around Shura arms' vanished, and he sighed in relief, letting down his arms and rubbing the stiffness out of them. He regarded Aioria, considering that they really were very close to the same size. But of course, Shura was the better warrior. With a quick enough attack, he might be able to surprise him enough to give him just a few moments to make a run for the door. He tensed, preparing to pounce.

Aioria lifted his eyes to look at him. Such a piercing gaze. Without the glamour, Shura felt terror coursing through his body when those eyes fell on him.

“Don’t even think about it. I’m not as fond of you as my brother. I’ll eat you and be done with it,” he muttered.

Shura looked away.

“Tch...I’m not hungry,” he said.

“As you please,” said Aioria, and took the food away.

Shura laid down on the bed for a few moments more, before getting up to look out the window. The permanent darkness of the night along with the eerie glow of the night towers bathed everything in a pale green light . He looked down, hopeful to be able get out through there, but it had to be at least four floors, and the walls were impossible to try and scale down on his own. He huffed and turned back inside. A big blood stain covered the part of the floor where he stood. The horn crushed and forgotten laid on the corner, yet something glittered near it. He approached it and found the ice mirror.

With a glimmer of hope in his heart he picked it up and opened it.

“Milo! Milo can you hear me?” he called.

It took but a moment for Milo’s face to appear within the mirror.

“Shura, hey, I heard you got the castle back. Congrats!” said Milo, smiling at him.

“Yes, but Aioros is a vampire and he’s holding me and all my men in the castle!” 

Milo frowned for a moment, seemingly confused. 

“So... you just found out he’s a vampire? Like, just now?” 

“You knew?!” 

“Uh, Camus told me when you guys left. That’s why he was so rude to him when you guys came to visit. Apparently they don’t get along. Aioros caused a lot of trouble at the edges of the white lands when he built the night towers and Camus is still a bit pissed about that.” 

“Gods, Milo, why didn’t you tell me?!” 

“Because I knew you were going to freak out. Look at you!” 

“Of course I’m freaking out! I’m locked in a castle full of vampires!” 

“But he hasn’t hurt you, right? Camus said he was in love with you” 

“Milo what part of locked in a castle full of vampires don’t you understand?! Wait...he said what?” 

A cold hand descended on Shura’s shoulder.

“Hi Milo!” said Aioros, speaking over Shura’s shoulder. 

“Hi Aioros. Be nice to him, he’s all freaked out,” said Milo, waving at them. 

“I will. Tell Camus I say hi and thanks for the help!”

Milo’s image vanished from the mirror, and Aioros snatched it away from Shura’s hands.

“You really can’t stand to not see him for even a day?” he asked, pocketing the mirror.

Shura pulled away from him, walking away without taking his eyes off of him.

Aioros snapped his fingers and the door he had left open slammed close.

“Aioria told me you didn’t want to eat. I take it you haven’t changed your mind about leaving,” said the vampire with a pained expression. 

“What have you done to my men?” demanded Shura.

“We’re not savages like Kanon,” said Aioros, walking towards him. Shura backed away from him. ”And you have been very nice to all of us, so most of them are just living among us. The ones that were a bit rowdier were escorted to the dungeons, where we hope they will change their attitude. The ones that fully refused our hospitality…Well, there weren’t that many.” 

“You ate them.” 

“Only a few.” 

The back of Shura's legs hit against the bed and he fell on it. Aioros moved to pounce on him with a laugh.

“What do you want to do with me?” asked Shura. Aioros reached out to hold his face. 

“Only what you wanted to do with me. Shura, did you really think I was so dumb, that I didn’t see how you looked at me when you managed to forget about Milo? How much you wanted me when you saw how much pleasure I could bring you? Don’t tell me you have suddenly changed your mind about me after speaking with Milo.” 

Shura swallowed and looked away. “That was a mistake. That...I wasn’t…,” he muttered, embarrassed at having Aioros speak so bluntly of those times when his desire for him had broken through his self control.

“Shura, you’re so gorgeous when you lie,” said Aioros, pulling up Shura’s face to kiss him.

And once more, Shura’s treacherous heart melted for Aioros, letting him into his mouth, relaxing under his touch as the vampire hands' caressed his waist and slipped underneath his tunic to touch his heated skin. The cold touch of his fingers as well as the slight sharpness of his nails sent shivers of danger and pleasure down his back. Aioros then started kissing a line from Shura’s jaw, down to his neck and Shura’s heart accelerated, knowing the danger of Aioros fangs'so close to his skin. He panted, grasping at the vampire’s shirt.

“There is…,” started Aioros, licking at Shura’s neck, over the wounds that Kanon claws' had left in him. “There is a foreign scent to your blood. Did Kanon bite you?”

“N-No! Kanon didn’t bite me. It was...It was his claws,” 

“Hmph...and yet, I can smell...A scent, like flowers…”

Shura opened his eyes, suddenly realizing that Aioros might be able to smell Aphrodite’s blood that he had drank during the times he had laid with them. The terror of having Aioros find out about those times he had begged Aphrodite to share his bed just so he could pretend like he and his necromancer were Aioros, filled him with a shame so great, he felt like he would rather die before letting Aioros know.

He pushed the vampire away.

“Let me go. Let me go!” he cried.

But Aioros grabbed his wrists and pinned him down on the bed. He lifted an elegant eyebrow at Shura’s change in behavior and the way he struggled against him.

“This scent of flowers...of roses...Ah, it was Aphrodite, wasn’t it?” he asked. “I knew I hadn’t been wrong when I saw the way he touched you so easily. I nearly ruined it all when he embraced you. I wanted him dead in that instant. For years he has sent mercenaries to take back my castle. I should be grateful to him for sending you back to me, but...Ah, I’m furious. I hate that he has touched you.”

The usual feeling of regret curled in Shura’s stomach, terror mixing with it. If Aioros was furious now, how would he feel if he found out that he had laid with Aphrodite willingly, crying out his name during climax. That he had sullied his memory so thoroughly?

“Aioros...that...I…,” started Shura, but he couldn’t find the words to say. He wanted to apologize, to beg for forgiveness, and to deny everything. All at the same time.

Aioros’ serious expression relaxed into a sad smile.

“Aw, Shura. My little swordmaster. I really cannot stand to see such pain in your face. I’m not upset at you. Aphrodite is a wicked snake, and I can’t blame him for being taken by your beauty. Don’t worry. I can vanish his magic from your body, and it won’t even hurt,” said Aioros, then bared his fangs, and bit down on Shura’s neck.

Shura tried to scream, when he was overcome by a wave of pleasure all through his body. He moaned and his hips ground up against Aioros. His eyes rolled back in pleasure as he whined for more, wrapping his legs around the vampire biting on his neck

Aioros let go of his wrists and wrapped his arms around Shura, pulling him closer. Shura clung on to him, carding his fingers through Aioros’ dark curls as pleasure extended through his body.

“Yes! Yes! Aioros, more!” he cried, out of his mind with pleasure.

Aioros pulled away from him, his lips red with blood. He moaned, grinding his hips against Shura, his hands descending through his body to grab his ass.

“Fuck, you’re delicious,” he mused, looking down at Shura’s dazed expression. “I don’t know how I stopped myself from taking you. If Camus wasn’t so annoyingly strong in his castle I would have fucked you on that closet until you had forgotten Milo’s name and could only cry my own.”

Shura arched against him, grinding against Aioros’ hard cock.

“What...what did you...do to me?” he asked, through the haze of the pleasure.

“Just a bit of my poison. It will break any spells that Aphrodite may have placed on you,” said Aioros, and licked at the bite marks on Shura’s neck, making him squirm and whine. “Ah, you make the loveliest noises. How sweet you can be my little Shura.”

Shura eyes' filled with tears hearing Aioros call him the same way he had addressed him in their youth. Of having the real Aioros embracing him so lovingly. He looked at Aioros’ lips, red with his blood, and his heart twisted painfully at the realization that he still loved him. Even like this. 

He kissed him, the metallic taste of blood flooding his mouth, but he didn’t care. 

He loved him and his love terrified him. 

Tears fell down his cheeks. Aioros thumbed them away.

“Does it make you so sad? That I’ve become this?” he asked, his voice a whisper, hiding his face against Shura’s neck.

“No,” said Shura.

But he couldn’t stop crying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider leaving a like or a comment. It would mean a lot to me.


	12. Chapter 12

In the castle, nights were days, and all time was night, so it was easy to lose track of time. 

But Shura still had his pocket watch, and he kept track of the time when the sun was supposed to go out. Then checked it against the sudden silence through the castle and the citadel.

In a frenzy, he tied up all the blankets and sheets on the bed, tied one end to the great bed, then threw the other out the window.

Aioros hadn’t appeared for a day and a night after he had bitten him, and Shura wasn’t sure if he would go mad from not seeing him, or for actually seeing him again.

Either way, he scaled down the wall of the castle using the tied up blankets, which had been just enough to get him to the courtyard below.

He made a run for the nearest exit, which led to a smaller courtyard which looked like the place were provisions would have been delivered. He noticed some old chariots and wooden crates strews about, with blood stains here and there. He looked around until he noticed another, smaller door that led to a stone hallway. Silent as a shadow he made his way out of the castle and into the citadel itself. He swallowed, feeling his heart pumping fear in his chest. He had to be close to an exit. He could see the walls of the citadel rising over him just a little bit away.

He tensed, wondering where to go from here. Aphrodite would probably be a bad idea. But, no matter how much he hated the thought of it, he might end up going to Camus in the end. He and Milo seemed to have more information on what the hell was going on. And Aioros seemed to be at least a bit wary of Camus’ power.

He wondered for a moment if Aioros might try to fight Camus once he found out, and his steps faltered. No, that couldn’t happen, right? Aioros was too level headed for that.

A little too level headed, considering how calm he had been through his entire charade.

Anger filled him and he ran faster to where he could see what looked like a bigger street opening between the empty houses. That had to lead towards and exit, he was sure of it, from what he remembered of the maps that Aioros had given him.

A couple houses ahead of him, a figure strolled out of the shadows, arms crossed to glare at Shura with piercing green eyes.

“Aioria…,” whispered Shura, his blood running cold.

The vampire walked towards him. “Have you gone mad? Do you want to die?” he asked, and Shura could see the glint of his fangs against the green lights from the night towers.

“Aioria let me go.”

“Hmph...I’ve let you live just because Aioros has lost his mind about you. As far as I’m concerned, you deserve to get as much as you gave him. A sword to the heart and to be discarded away like trash!” he yelled.

Shura ran away. But he didn’t have much strength in him. Aioria’s words weighed on him, echoing his own guilty thoughts. Speaking with the same words that his regret had whispered in his head during all those years where only the desire for vengeance against Saga had kept him from taking his life with the same sword he had used to kill Aioros.

He turned to the left on a corner and felt something collide against him, making him crash against the wall and crumble to the ground.

“You...how can he not hate you? How can he love you?!” roared Aioria, grabbing Shura by the front of his tunic and pulling him up like a rag doll. “I hate you! I hate that when I see you all I can see is Aioros falling from that cliff! All I see is him dying again and again by your sword! Because you had to be the righteous one! You had to put cruel laws over the life of my brother!”

The world was a spinning blur in Shura’s eyes, and he could feel warm blood falling down the side of his face. He blinked a couple times, forcing his eyes to focus. In front of him, he could see Aioria’s inhuman green eyes burning with rage, with great tears falling from him as he glared at Shura.

“Now we’re both dead! We’re both dead and it’s worse! But I couldn’t stand the thought of aging and dying and leaving him alone in death forever!”

Shura’s heart twisted painfully in his chest. He wanted to wipe away those tears. He wanted to beg the gods to turn back time and stop him from taking away everything from both of them.

Aioria slammed him against the wall, making Shura’s vision blackout for a second.

“How does this feel?! How does dying feel?! Isn’t it painful?!” he yelled, slamming him against the wall again and again until a shadow descended on them and pushed him away.

Shura felt himself falling until he was caught in a pair of strong arms.

“What are you doing?!” growled Aioros and the terror in Shura’s heart eased when he found himself held against the archer’s chest.

“How can you love him?! It’s his fault! It’s all his fault!” yelled Aioria, lying on the floor.

Aioros took several deep breaths before answering.

“We are all guilty of something. I cannot condemn him when I go out and murder people in the night,” he said, his voice slowly returning to it s usual calm. 

“If he hadn’t killed you… If we hadn’t had to become this-!“ retorted Aioria.

“But we did!” cried Aioros, holding Shura closer  to his chest. “We did and there is nothing that will undo the past! I won’t fight against the reality of the world! I just want to keep as much as I can salvage from our lives! So let me keep the love of my youth! I had to see you die despite everything, and now I must watch him die too?! Let me pretend like nothing happened! Let me try to keep going with what I can scrape back from the claws of fate!”

Shura tried to reach out to Aioros, but his vision blacked out, and he fell into unconsciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this, please consider leaving a like or a comment. It would meant a lot to me.


	13. Chapter 13

Shura woke up to the scent of coffee. He opened his eyes and saw the same ceiling with the black chandelier on it that belonged to Aioros’ room. He looked to the side and saw Aioria beside the window, carrying a tray with food in one hand while using the other to open the curtains. 

He noticed that there were now iron bars on the window, and frowned.

Aioria turned around and walked up to him.

“Aioros told me to say I was sorry for bashing your head against the wall,” he said  declared , setting the tray with food and drink on the bedside table and sitting down on the edge of the bed.

Shura sat up. His head pounded in pain, but he gritted his teeth and endured it.

“What happened to your face?” he asked, looking at the bruise on the side of Aioria’s face. “Did he hurt you?”

Aioria shrugged and reached for a small golden bottle on the tray. He emptied the golden liquid it contained into the glass of water and stirred it with a spoon.

“When he pushed me away I fell on my face. It’s nothing,” he said.

Shura pursed his lips, staring in concern at the ugly bruise. He reached out to push some of Aioria’s hair away and see it clearly. Vampires could heal very quickly, so it worried him that it hadn’t faded.

“It looks bad,” he said.

“Eat,” ordered Aioria, handing him the glass of water he had prepared. 

Shura made a wary face. 

“I’m not hungry. I don’t want to eat.”

“You haven’t eaten anything in days,” retorted Aioria, gritting his teeth. Despite the sharp darkness that his green eyes had taken on, and despite the strance paleness he now had, there was still a sense of youthfulness to him. As if his youth was hidden behind a mask of anger.

“You...what happened to you?” asked Shura, thinking back to those days when Aioria had been so small that Aioros had carried him around everywhere, cooing about how cute he was.

“I died. I told you,” said Aioria, setting the glass back on the tray.

“Aioros would have never let anything happen to you,” whispered Shura, pulling his knees against his chest. 

“No, he wouldn’t. He even agreed to be turned into a vampire so he could still be there for me. So we could escape from the south. And then he served that monster for years. Enduring everything, allowing anything,” Aioria clenched his fists so hard, his sharp nails pierced into his skin. “But I couldn’t let him keep doing it. I couldn’t let that monster keep taking what he wanted from him just in exchange for keeping me safe. And anyway...eighteen is a good enough age to stay at.”

“Aioria…,” whispered Shura, his throat constricting and a cold shiver running down his back. “What…?”

“I asked that bastard to turn me. I said I wanted it no matter what Aioros said. And I did. I wanted to be strong enough to kill him. Aioros didn’t want to do it. He thought it was too risky. You know how vampires only know of one crime: killing another vampire. We would be hunted down and I knew it, but I couldn’t stand it anymore, so I had him turn me. But Aioros discovered us. Right when I was dying. Can you believe my luck?”

“And?”

“The last thing I saw before dying was him tearing that bastard’s head off,” said Aioria with a sigh. Then he shook his head and gave a sad smile, so very much like Aioros did when there was a pain that he wouldn’t talk about. “I had wanted him to do that for so long. Next thing I remember is waking up in a coffin, and we were leaving the city, running away from our crime. That’s why we took over this castle. He had to make his own commune for us to avoid judgement by the others, so we escaped here, to the ends of the world to fight Camus for a piece of his lands, and took in every vampire refugee who came by. The ones who had committed crimes that even monsters would not forgive. I suppose, in a way...we are more savage than Kanon.”

Shura placed a hand on Aioria’s back.

“You’re not. You could never,” he said.

Aioria scoffed. “You have ten years of vampire life to catch up with. You will change your mind.”

“I won’t.”

“You’re so stubborn,” said Aioria, smiling at Shura for the first time. Just for a second before looking away. “You’re too much like me. You’re going to hurt him just like I did when I died.”

“I…”

Aioria turned to face him again, his usual frown back on his face.

“Now eat. Hurry, it’s cold already,” he ordered and grabbed back the glass, holding it out for him.

Shura shook his head. “That bruise really looks bad. What did Aioros say about-”

Aioria grabbed his jaw, forced open his mouth and made him drink the contents of the glass. 

“He said to make sure you ate something,” he muttered.

Shura tried to push him away, but Aioria had unnatural strength, so he just drank the whole thing. It had a strange sweet aftertaste. Like honey. 

“What are you doing?” asked Aioros, walking into the room.

Aioria let go of him and turned towards his brother.

“Making sure he eats something.”

Aioros sighed.

That’s enough. Out,” he said, motioning towards the door. Aioria walked towards the door, but Aioros stopped him, pulling him by the chin to look at his face. “You didn’t put on the medicine.”

“I did.”

“Liar. Go get the medicine and I want to see you put it on.”

Pouting, Aioria walked out of the room, slamming the door closed behind him.

“That boy, I swear. He’s becoming more rebellious every day. I don’t know what I’m going to do with him,” said Aioros, and went to sit down next to Shura on the bed. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I got my head bashed against a wall,” he grunted. “What did he give me? The weird liquid in the bottle, what was it?”

Aioros combed back some of Shura’s hair, looking carefully at his face.

“Medicine. Do you feel better now?” he asked.

Shura rolled his eyes, when he realized that his head no longer hurt. And the pain all over his body was lessening until it became little more dull ache.

“Hmmm...better, yes.”

“That’s good,” said Aioros with a smile. “You should be alright soon. And so would Aioria if he had only listened to me when I gave him the medicine. Ah, what am I going to do with you both? What were you thinking? Scaling down the wall! What if you had fallen down?”

“But I didn’t.”

“You two are the same! I can’t believe you. Why do you keep trying to escape?” demanded Aioros.

Shura looked down, unable to stare back at Aioros.

Why had he tried to escape? Because he was lost and trapped and confused? Because he felt like he didn’t know this new blood drinking man who claimed to be the love of his youth? Because he was an idiot?

“Shura?” asked Aioros. “Do you really want to leave so badly? Seriously?”

He asked, his tone growing distressed. He huffed and shook his head.

“I don’t want to keep you here against your will,” he whispered, looking at the window with the iron bars in it. “But I...can’t stand to have you leave. So I won’t allow it.” 

He stood up and held his head.

“Shura, between becoming a tyrant and losing you again…” he said, his dark green eyes staring down at him with an emotion that Shura couldn’t read. He walked towards him, crawling over him on the bed. “Ah, but I am already a monster.”

“Aioros, you’re not-” started Shura, but Aioros claimed his lips. He tensed, surprised by the move and by the cold of his lips. A small scream escaped his lips, and the vampire laughed.

“I wish you wouldn’t fear me so much, but you  _ are  _ very cute all scared like that,” said Aioros, tracing his sharp nails over Shura thighs ' , the sensation sending goosebumps through  the skin despite the barrier of the fabric.

Feeling how hard he was becoming, Shura tried to scramble away from him, but Aioros pulled him back.

“Shura, Shura, the scent of your desire drives me mad.” 

“Wait! No, I-!” 

“Do you want to be on top instead? You prefer pinning me down? I could ride you if you’d like.”

Shura felt his whole face burning in embarrassment. He had never thought Aioros could be so forward like that, and he lost his wits for a moment.

“You- How can you say that?!” he cried.

“Me? Weren’t you the one who tried to assault me?” asked Aioros, winking at him. “And yet you suddenly act like I’m the pervert here!” 

“I didn’t- I wasn’t really going to-!“ stuttered Shura, clenching his hands into fists.

Aioros laughed and waved a hand at him. From the shadows projected by the torches on the wall came tendrils of darkness that wrapped around Shura’s wrists, chaining them to the headboard.

“Shura, I can’t endure anymore. I’ve become an animal and I hunger for you,” said Aioros, and kissed him.

Shura stopped struggling and opened his mouth when he felt Aioros’ cold tongue licking against his lips. The feel of him inside his mouth, the feel of him grinding against his groin and of his hands roaming his chest, it all set Shura’s heart racing in his chest and he moaned into the kiss.

Aioros laughed against  his lips, and tore Shura’s shirt into pieces, the fabric tearing like nothing under his nails. Then he started kissing his way down the swordmaster’s neck, making him flinch.

“That annoying scent is gone from your blood,” whispered Aioros with a pleased tone, licking over a vein in Shura’s neck.

“Don’t- Don’t talk about that now,” muttered Shura, who didn’t want to even think about Aphrodite while having Aioros pleasing him like that. “Get these things off my wrists.”

The vampire gave a playful nip at Shura’s shoulder, then moved lower, pinching one of his nipples.

“After you so recklessly escaped out the window? I don’t think so,” said Aioros. “I was hoping you would have changed your mind by now, but I see I still have quite a bit of convincing to do. Let me show you how much better it would be to stay by my side.”

With that, Aioros ripped Shura pants ' and threw them away. In another move, he tore apart his underwear, letting his erection spring up.

“So hard already,” mused Aioros with a smirk. He opened his pants. “Me too. Ah, I can barely wait…”

He took off his shirt, throwing it into the corner, then made quick work of his pants, freeing his own erection.

Shura felt his mouth run dry at the sight of Aioros straddling him, naked and staring down at him with hungry eyes. He moved up to caress his muscular chest, but the bindings in his wrists held him down.

“Release me,” he demanded.

Aioros ignored him, and instead grabbed Shura’s dick, giving it a few strokes. 

“You’re so hot now. Look how big you’ve become,” he said, then pressed his cock against Shura’s grasping both of them at the same time and stroking, letting the fluids leaking from them mix. He moaned. “You feel so hot. So alive.”

Shura moaned, wanting more. Wanting to feel Aioros’ body. To let his hands roam over the muscles outlined by the orange flame of the torches.

“Please, Aioros, let me go. I want- to touch you,” said Shura, his lust winning over his embarrassment.

Aioros threw his head back, his strokes getting faster.

“Shura, you run away from me one moment, then say such sweet things the next. You-,” he panted. “You really will drive me mad.”

Aioros flicked his thumb over the sensitive head of Shura’s cock, making him arch over the bed and whine for more. Shura eyes ' rolled back, and he thought that if  one of them was mad, it had to be him. Mad with regret. Mad with yearning. Mad with love for the man uselessly holding him prisoner, when he had already been imprisoned by him decades ago. In a more innocent time, when both their hearts still beat in their chests.

Aioros let go of him, pulling away.

“Ah! No! More!” begged Shura.

“I should leave you hanging like this,” said Aioros, with a mischievous smirk, then he reached out into the drawer of the bedside table. He pulled out a small glass bottle. “That would be a good punishment for trying to escape. But...I’m not so mean. And I’ve been waiting for this for long enough.”

He opened the bottle and poured some of the thick liquid inside into his fingers. The scent of it reached Shura’s nose, a mix of incense and musk.  Aioros then stroked  his dick, covering it in the liquid from base to head, eyes fixed on Shura’s face, entranced  by the changes of his expression.

Then he positioned himself over him, the tip of Shura’s cock against his entrance.

“Wait,” called Shura. “You still need to prepare. Or it’ll hurt.”

Aioros licked his lips. “Ah, don’t worry about that. I’m ready. Ever since you pulled me into your bed and ripped off my clothes, keeping my hands away from you has been so hard. I’ve had to do with my own fingers, but I’m ready.”

Shura felt every single thought leave his mind. His head full of a shocked silence at the mental image of Aioros in bed, legs splayed and fucking himself on his own fingers while thinking of him.

Aioros laughed at his shock. 

“You really bring out the worst of me, my little swordmaster,” he said, and sank himself on Shura’s length, a moan escaping his lips when he bottomed out. “Fuck, yes. Ah, it’s great!”

Shura groaned, his hips pushing up despite his attempts at holding still, but the feeling of Aioros’ body tightening all around him made his  own seek more of him.

Aioros braced against his chest, caressing Shura pecs ' , moving slowly up and down on his cock.

“How does it feel?” he asked, his dick hard and leaking against Shura’s stomach. “Isn’t it good? Isn’t my body the same as a living one? You can forget about Milo and Aphrodite. I will please you far better than they could ever hope to.”

He released the bindings holding Shura’s arms and grabbed his hands, pulling them to touch his chest.

Finally free, Shura hands ' roamed over Aioros’ body, caressing the muscles to settle in his hips. And for once, he realized the nature of Aioros’ jealousy. It lay in the cold touch of his skin, in the lack of a heartbeat when Shura kissed his chest. In the way his body was  _ not  _ the same as a living one. The cold wall of death stood between them, separating them forever.

Shura pushed up to flip their positions and hold him under his body.

“Sh-Shura?” asked Aioros, sudden fear in his eyes.

“No this is better than any living body. Better than anyone else. This is you,” he said, and thrusted harder into him, grinding faster, letting his instincts and his desire take over him.

He really was better. Much better than any other time he had laid with Aphrodite and Deathmask, whose illusions had been flushed with the force of life.

They paled at the sight of having the real one under him, smiling and moaning as Shura thrusted into him.

Aioros pulled him closer and cried out when Shura hit the special spot inside him. 

“It’s hot! You’re so hot!” cried Aioros, scratching at Shura’s back when that spot inside him started getting hit with every thrust. “Come inside me, I want- I want to feel it inside me!”

Shura eyes ' rolled back  from hearing that and he bit his lower lip. He was too close, he wasn’t going to last much longer. 

He grabbed a hold of Aioros’ length and pumped it in time with his erratic thrusts, making him squirm and arch over the bed.

Aioros moaned, and as his climax overtook him, he bit down on Shura’s shoulder, sending a wave of ecstasy through him and bringing him over the edge with him.

Shura collapsed next to him in a haze of pleasure, and it took him a moment to react and notice that he was being shaken.

“Shura? Shura, are you alright?” asked Aioros, patting his face, a look of worry in his face.

The swordmaster made a vague noise and nodded his head. It had been the best, most overwhelming orgasm he had ever had. Sex was never going to be the same after this for him.

Aioros sighed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize-”

Shura pulled him down on the bed next to him and held him closer.

“I love you,” he said, the daze of the pleasure of Aioros’ poison magnifying the emotions burning inside him. “I’ve always loved you, and I love you still. I can’t...think of how living would be without loving you.”

Aioros froze, then he buried his face against Shura’s chest.

“Still?” he asked, his voice a trembling whisper.

“And forever,” answered Shura, pulling him up to kiss his cold lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider leaving a like or a comment. It would mean a lot to me.


	14. Chapter 14

Shura dreamt. 

He dreamt of the faraway sanctuary that he knew was yet to exist. He dreamt of that one constellation in the sky that seemed to shine just for him.

And he dreamt of war.

But in his dreamt he was dead. Dead and lying in the cold of the underworld’s prison of ice, while the drums of war echoed all around.

In this dream of war and death, Saga came for him.

“We must rise,” he said, and Shura grasped at his neck with enough strength to have killed him once more. Because in this dream, he had only found out how wrong he had been about everything after death. And in the despair of the underworld, his regret followed him.

“Enough,” said a calm voice behind Saga, and Shura let go. A figure approached from the shadows. Piercing purple eyes glared at him. “The burden we must bear now is heavy enough for us to keep fighting between ourselves. Come, we only have twelve hours.”

And Shura, once more, put duty ahead of his heart.

As he always did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider leaving a like or comment. It would mean a lot to me.


	15. Chapter 15

Shura woke up to the feeling of empty space next to him. He heard voices around him, but he didn’t want to open his eyes. He still felt too exhausted from last night. Aioros seemed to want to make up for all the time lost, and he had barely let him sleep every night since Shura had confessed his feelings to him.

“When?” Aioros was asking, and there was the sound of clothes shuffling.

“Tonight,” answered Aioria. “Very soon. Her carriage was spotted just beyond the reach of the night towers.

“Did she say why?” 

“No,” answered Aioria. Then there came the sound of shuffling paper. “All this says is that she’s arriving tonight.”

Shura sat up. “Who is coming tonight?” he asked his voice sluggish.

Aioros gave him a quick kiss on the forehead and pushed him back down on the bed.

“No one, go back to sleep,” he said, and walked out of the room. Aioria followed him, closing the door behind him.

Shura gritted his teeth and pushed off the blankets, decided to find out what was happening. 

He quickly washed himself and threw on the first set of clothes he could find. 

As he walked towards the door, he noticed a beautiful white carriage coming into the courtyard below. Aioros, Aioria, and a small group of their vampires were already there to receive it.

Shura frowned. They never, ever had guests.

Aioros opened the door of the carriage and held his hand out for someone. A lady came out. She had a long white dress, and long dark hair, but her face was covered by a slightly translucent veil that reminded Shura of a bride’s veil.

His stomach twisted in dread at the sight of how carefully Aioros led the woman into the castle.

He wondered why he had refused to tell him about her. Could she be a vampire? One of those that had hunted them? Or perhaps another vampire refugee coming to seek asylum there?

He went to the door and tried to open it, but realized that it was locked. He pulled it again, but it wouldn’t budge. He ended up kicking it, but it still wouldn’t move. He gritted his teeth and cursed Aioros under his breath. He looked over to the window, but there were still iron bars on it. 

He was trapped.

He went to look in the closet and the chests strewn around the room, looking for anything that could help him open the door, but there was nothing and he ended up laying back down on the bed, frowning at the ceiling.

Here was Aioros, yet again hiding things from him. It seemed like that was an ingrained habit he had gotten after death. It infuriated Shura to no end. 

His vision blurred. He was still very tired, and despite his anger and worry, his eyes were about to close. He thought back to the dream he’d had. Lately, he kept having strange dreams that he only half remembered, but they always left him with the lingering feeling of having seen something that was yet to come.

_ “You too, should come,”  _ he heard a faraway voice call and he jolted up on the bed, fully awake. He looked around, but there was no one in the room with him.

He rubbed at his eyes, wondering if that had also been something he’d dreamt.

something caught his sight, and he looked towards the door.

It was open.

His heart gave a jump of fear, and a shiver ran down his spine. He jumped off the bed and walked up to the door slowly, inspecting it. 

It was slightly ajar, but he was sure it had been completely locked just a few moments ago. 

He grabbed the door and swung it completely open. Outside, all he could see were the lit torches lining the hallway, and when he stepped out, he could hear sounds like a party below, and he followed the music.

On the first floor, Shura found that the party seemed to be happening on the dining hall, and he made his way there with hesitant steps. He stayed in the shadows, and only took a small peek around the edge of the open double doors.

Inside, among the lights of the candles and the torches, some vampires played soft music, while others chatted, joking and laughing. The long dining table had been pushed to the side, and they all sat in chairs and benches in a slight circle, facing towards the other end of the room, where The woman in the long dress sat next to Aioros, and Aioria next to his brother. Shura noticed that Aioros had a serious look in his face that Shura had never seen on him before, and it worried him.

The woman in white seemed to notice him, and she extended her hand towards him.

“Shura, you’re finally here. Come. Come closer,” she said in a soft voice that nevertheless felt like a whisper right into  hid ears.

Aioros also noticed him, and he frowned at seeing him. Ignoring everyone in the room, Shura strolled forward.

“Do we know each other?” he asked.

She stood up. “We have, and we will,” she said. A man that Shura recognized as the driver of the carriage came forth and handed something to her. It looked long and was wrapped in pale green silks with a golden thread. “I brought you a gift. I hope you may have enough time to familiarize yourself with it. I suggest you practice as much as possible. It is a bit of finicky blade, but I trust you will not have any problem, swordmaster Shura.”

“Hmmm? A sword?” he mused while taking it from her hands. He removed the golden thread and the silks unraveled, showing a sword with a mirrored blade and golden handle. When Shura looked at his own reflection on the blade, it felt to him as if he looked at himself from far away. From a time that had been and was yet to come. From a place where the past and the future merged not in the present, but in a place beyond time, and he could see all the possibilities open for his immortal soul.

“It’s...beautiful,” said Shura, when regained the capacity to speak.

The woman gave a pleased laugh.

“I believe there are no better hands for it,” she said, then she turned towards Aioros. “Your castle is very beautiful. Would you show me the gardens?”

Aioros nodded and stood up. Shura noticed that he had a calm expression, but there was no smile on his lips. He held out his hand to the woman and led them towards the door that led to the central gardens.

Shura’s hold on the sword strengthened, and it felt to him like the blade vibrated in his hand, echoing the turmoil in his chest at seeing them leave together. Was this what Aioros had felt every time he had kept trying to get Milo back? Shura regretted his blindness. He grabbed the green silks and wrapped them around the sword, then he excused himself from the hall, walking back towards the main foyer.

He stopped by the main entrance, with the sounds of the party behind him. He looked down at the blade in his hands, wondering what was going on. 

He gritted his teeth, and went to one of the back doors that led to the kitchens. Then he kept going through a few doors, passing through the side hallways until he reached a small room with gardening equipment, with a small door. 

He grabbed the doorknob and another hand settled over him.

“I knew you were going to do something stupid,” said Aioria behind him.

“Who is that woman? How long have they known each other  ?” demanded Shura, pushing him away.

Aioria huffed. “This isn’t the moment to be jealous,” he said.

Shura went to grab the doorknob again, but Aioria held his hand once more.

“Stop!” he hissed.

“Then tell me what the hell is going on! Dammit, Aioros looks so worried. There is definitely something wrong and I’m sick of guessing.”

Aioria hung his head.

“I don’t really know much about it. I think they’ve known each other for years, but he won’t really tell me who she is. I think I met her once, but it’s all very blurry in my mind. She was the one who told him to come up here and take over the castle, but…,” he said, and bit his lower lip in worry.

Shura nodded. “Then, more of a reason to find out what is going on,” said Shura, turning the doorknob and opening the door slightly.

Aioria moved closer to him and wrapped his arm around Shura shoulders ' .

“Idiot! He’ll notice you right away. I’ll cover us,” he said, and a shadow fell over them like a thin black veil.

They walked through the small door, which led to one of the corners of the gardens, hidden by old trees and overgrown bushes. They crouched among the bushes, and slowly made their way forward until they saw Aioros and the woman walking together through the trees.

“We have only begun the cleanup of what Kanon did, so I’m afraid there isn’t much to see,” said Aioros, looking at the unkept foliage. “In a few months, they might be more to your liking.”

The woman nodded, and gave a long sigh.

“Do not concern yourself with that,” she said, and looked up at the dark skies overhead.

Aioros followed her gaze, then looked back at her with a concerned expression.

“Won’t I have even that long?” he asked.

The woman clasped her hands together.

“Events have started to precipitate, and I’m afraid that...we are not prepared,” she lamented. “The timelines for you all do not match as they should. Events are not aligning…,” she said.

“...A battle lost before it has even started then?”

“Not...yet…,” she whispered. “I still hold hope, but the paths to victory are few and narrow for us now.”

Aioros nodded. “When you gave that sword to Shura...I knew the time had come,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. “I already knew it, but the timing feels so terribly unfair now that it is here. Every night I see my futures and pasts dance before my eyes. All paths, the ones to victory and to defeat. Ah, I have so many that end in defeat.”

“Death does not mean defeat, Aioros,” she said, reaching out to place her hand over his. “You always fulfill your duty. In every one of your paths. That is why I have commended myself to your hands. Because you always succeed in the completion of your duty.”

Aioros gave her a pained smile and kneeled before her.

“When this is all over...When the stars have turned in our favor, even if it is a thousand lives away I beg you to grant me a happy ending.”

She placed a hand on his head like a loving mother.

“You will have it. I swear. All the joys of your heart will be returned. But what happens within this lifetime, I cannot promise.”

Aioros nodded and stood up. 

“I know.”

She clasped her hands over his. 

“My child. I have given you all I could give. And taken too much from you already. I must leave now. Please take care of this vessel. She loved gardens, she would like to be buried here.”

“As you wish, my goddess,” he said.

She let go of him and placed her hands over her chest, when there was a gust of wind blowing through the trees, as if the world itself drew in a breath of surprise. 

Silence fell.

The world stood still.

Glittering dust fell from her hair and dress, and she collapsed on the waiting arms of Aioros, who softly laid her down on the grass.

“If you’re already here, you could bring me a shovel to dig her a grave,” called Aioros, looking at the corner where Shura and Aioria still stayed hunched among the bunches.

Shura stood up first.

“So you knew we were here all along?” he asked, walking away from the protection of Aioria’s glamour.

“I only noticed now that her power faded. But if she allowed you to remain, it must have been for a reason. Aioria, I’m serious, a shovel. Now,” he ordered.

Aioria jumped to his feet and went back to the room to look for the shovel.

Shura walked up to where Aioros was kneeling next to the woman.

“Is she dead now?” he asked, kneeling down next to him.

“Probably was dead a long time ago. She takes her vessels at their deathbeds, although she can take living ones too.”

“What is she? You said… A goddess?”

Aioros gave him his usual easy smile and held Shura’s hand, basking in his warmth.

“There’s a funny thing that happens when you die, you know? It’s like...you come to the end of all things. To the place between life and death and the world and nonexistence, all at the same time. I met her there, and I knew what she was when she granted me just one more breath of life. Only enough for me to be able to beg the vampire of the cliff to turn me, and even that shook the heavens and the underworld. That was when I knew that there were things beyond the powers of the gods. That there might be a single breath of life more, but no turning back the wheels of time and karma,” he said. Then he squeezed Shura’s hand, and let his head fall on his shoulder. “War is coming, and we’re not ready.”


	16. Epilogue

The feeling of Aioros inside him made Shura moan and whine in pleasure. He grasped at the sheets for something to hold on to when above him Aioros thrusted harder, hitting right on the spot that made him cry out from pleasure.

The door opened.

“Aioros, the eastern tower is freezing!” he said.

Shura gasped, pulling up the blankets to try to cover himself, but there were none at hand. He felt his face flush even more from embarrassment. He attempted to close his legs, but Aioros held them firm in his hands and didn’t move an inch when his brother bursted in on them.

“Can it really not wait?” he asked, and thrusted into Shura again.

Shura covered his mouth to stop himself from moaning.

“No, the storm is too cold. I’ve been shielding it and defrosting the top, but it’s getting worse and now the flame is dimming.”

Aioros gave a low grunt of frustration.

“One of these days, Camus is going to reach the end of my patience,” he muttered, and lifted one of Shura’s legs higher with one hand, with the other grabbing a hold of Shura’s cock, thumbing the sensitive head.

Shura gritted his teeth, but a pleased whine still escaped him, and his hands went up to grasp at the sheets when Aioros ground against him faster, timing his thrusts to the strokes of his hand, making Shura eyes' roll back.

After nights of getting to know each other's bodies and learning of each other's pleasures, Aioros had turned out to be a very methodical lover, touching and kissing Shura with a precision that drove him crazy.

“But it would be too cruel to stop now, right love?” he cooed, his thrusts becoming harder.

Shura opened his mouth, wanting to yell at him about how they should definitely stop now because Aioria was still in the room and looking at them. Did he really feel no shame?! 

But all words died on Shura’s mouth as the pleasure built up inside him and he could only writhe under Aioros thrusts', panting for breath as he felt his orgasm approaching. Yet he couldn’t stop the embarrassment burning in the pit of his stomach to know that Aioria was Right There.

He looked over to where Aioria stood by the door, his piercing green eyes set on them, his gaze heavy and expression as hostile as it always was towards Shura. It set a strange fire burning through his body to know himself observed and he moaned, his orgasm washing over him and making him spill between them.

Aioros growled low in his throat, his fangs visible for a second as Shura tightened around him and his thrusts became erratic as he chased his own pleasure until he released inside Shura with a pleased sigh.

They caught their breaths for a moment, and then Aioros placed a soft kiss on Shura lips' and pulled out. 

Shura was so dazed by his release that he couldn’t even move.

“I’m sending this stupid ice storm right back into his damn door,” muttered Aioros, dressing up quickly. “Can you draw a bath for us? I’ll be right back as soon as I fix the tower and get rid of the storm.”

Hearing him leave snapped Shura out of his daze and he closed his legs. He noticed Aioria hadn’t moved, and still observed him with that piercing green gaze. 

“I’ll draw the bath myself,” said Shura, his voice raspy from exertion. He combed his hair back away from his face.

Aioria walked up to the bed, staring down at him, a curious look to his eyes as they roamed over Shura’s naked body.

“What is it that he sees on you?” he wondered aloud, crawling on the bed. Shura scrambled away from him, but Aioria grabbed his leg and pulled him closer.

“What are you doing?” hissed Shura, pushing him away. 

Tendrils of darkness from the shadows wrapped around his arms and wrists, pinning him down on the bed.

“I just want to know,” whispered Aioria, his fingertips trailing down Shura thighs' as he forced his legs open. “Why is he so crazy about you, when he never cared about anyone other than me for so long.”

Shura swallowed, his face burning in embarrassment at being held like that. His heart jumped when he felt Aioros’ come spilling out of him.

“Stop! He’ll be back any moment!” he hissed, suddenly terrified at being found in this position.

Aioria slipped a finger inside him and Shura’s breath caught up in his throat.

“Ah, it’s hot,” said Aioria, surprised. Then he licked his lips, the curious look in his eyes turning hungry. “Is it really so good inside you?”

Shura looked down and noticed the bulge in his pants. Aioria noticed his stare and with a low laugh unbuttoned his pants, releasing his length. It was thicker than Aioros, though not as long, and Shura wondered how it would stretch him. He shook his head, pushing away those thoughts.

“Don’t even try. Aioros will be so angry if he finds out,” muttered Shura, trying to pull his legs closed.

Aioria stroked his cock a few times and settled between his legs despite Shura struggles'.

“I just want a taste,” said Aioria. “I want to know why he can’t take his hands off of you. And he won’t be angry if it’s me.”

Shura gritted his teeth.

“You arrogant brat,” he growled.

Aioria grabbed his chin, lifting Shura’s head up.

“Show me how you feel,” he said, his eyes glowing against the lights of the candles and the torches. He looked especially enchanting like that, and the sight of his youthful face stirred a loving longing on Shura’s heart. He understood how much Aioros loved him then.

“Quickly,” whispered Shura. “Just once. I don’t want him to find out.” 

Aioria kissed him, his cold lips moving desperately against him, his tongue pushing inside Shura’s mouth to taste him. Shura opened up to him and Aioria moaned.

Shura pulled away, and gave a bite to the vampire lips'.

“Enough. He’ll find us,” he said, suddenly scared at how good Aioria had felt. At how delightful his demanding mouth was.

“But I want to taste all of you,” he said, pushing Shura legs' open to bare his entrance. Then he pushed inside him, bottoming out in a single thrust.

“Wait-!” started Shura, but his voice got caught up in his throat as he lost his breath.

“Hngh, it’s hot!” breathed Aioria, his eyes rolling back. “You’re so hot. Ah, it feels so good.”

Shura was still open from Aioros, and slick from their lube and love making, but Aioria was much thicker, and he had gone in dry. The grinding caused an uncomfortable burning for him.

“Idiot, that’s not how-” gasped Shura, but Aioria started moving right away, thrusting hard into him, grabbing his ass to drive deeper into him.

Aioria moved closer to lick a stripe over the skin of his neck.

“His scent is all over you,” he said, kissing over the place where Aioros had bitten him a few days ago. “It’s on your skin and on your blood.”

He moaned, and moved to the other side of Shura’s neck.

“I want you to smell like me too.”

Terror bloomed in Shura’s chest at the same time that a shiver of pleasure ran through him at the thought of how the pleasure of his bite would feel.

“No! He’ll find out,” he panted, his cock twitching in interest, already half hard. “He’s very jealous Aioria!”

“Hmmm? Why would he be jealous of me?” he asked, a smirk on his lips. “Who do you think comforted him when you assaulted him and tried to force him into your bed? Who gave him release even though he kept calling your name?”

Shura gasped, thinking back on that night. The image of Aioros spread open under Aioria that night in their tent only made him harder. He realized he would have wanted to see that. To see Aioros being driven to completion by Aioria, while Shura’s name fell from his lips. 

He moaned, his cock getting harder between them.

Aioria bared his fangs and bit down on his neck while thrusting into him and a wave of pleasure shot through Shura’s body. A harsher, more aggressive pleasure than the one he felt from Aioros fangs'. This felt like thunderbolts through his body, the pleasure heightened by the way he kept driving into him, pumping greedily.

“Deeper,” moaned Shura.

Aioria licked at the blood dripping from the two bite marks on his neck.

“Ah, you like it now,” he whispered against Shura’s skin. 

Shura shifted the angle of his hips, until he felt Aioria finally hit the spot inside him.

“There!” cried Shura, arching on the bed against his restraints. “It feels good!”

“You feel great. Ah, it’s so hot inside you!”

Shura panted, feeling his orgasm so close. Aioria was so different from Aioros. Much more aggressive, thrusting into him with more energy, rough and harsh. The difference was exhilarating and it set his skin on fire.

A shadow fell over them and they looked up to see Aioros staring down at them. 

They froze.

Aioros lifted an eyebrow at them. 

“Why did you stop? You were having so much fun,” he said, a serious expression in his face.

Shura felt the blood drain from his face.

Even Aioria, despite his previous bravado, faltered and wouldn’t move.

Aioros sighed and waved at his brother. The same tendrils of darkness that bound Shura wrapped around him, binding his arms behind him.

“You’re so immature still,” he said, grabbing Aioria’s chin and pulling his face up. “Jumping on Shura like a pervert, forcing him to take you with magic and poison.”

Aioria drew in a hesitant breath and Shura couldn’t stand it anymore.

“Aioros, don’t be angry,” he begged him. “He...he didn’t…”

“Don’t enable him Shura. He needs to learn,” he said, then turned to his brother. “Look at yourself, pouncing on him as soon as I left. You didn’t even bother to take off your clothes.”

He pulled him away from Shura and tore off his shirt and pants, his sharp nails dragging over the skin of his brother leaving red lines.

“Aioros…,” mumbled Aioria, his eyes watering. 

“Don’t give me those pathetic tears. You always act rashly like this. Have I taught you to be like that? To hold your lover down and chase your own pleasure only?” he asked and pushed him face down on the bed between Shura’s legs. “From all the times that I’ve taken you, have you learned nothing? Did I ever tell you that you could just push into a man like an animal with no preparation? It looks like I’ll have to instruct you again.”

He reached around to grab a hold of his brother’s cock, feeling the hardness of it.

“But Aioros, he- Ah! He was already open. He took me so well,” he said.

Aioros pushed his face against the bed, lifted his hips, and slapped his ass, making him cry out in pain.

“Truly, Shura was right, you’re becoming a brat,” he said.

“Don’t punish him,” said Shura, despite the fact that he felt his cheeks burning from seeing Aioros being so stern. He tried to close his legs to hide how hard his cock was getting from seeing them, but Aioria’s face was so close to his groin, and he was still being held down on the bed.

Aioros smirked, and caressed Aioria’s ass where he had slapped him.

“See Aioria? He’s so nice to you and yet you keep being mean. You could start by apologizing to him.”

Aioria growled and gritted his teeth.

“No?” asked Aioros, and grabbed Aioria by the hair, pulling his face up. “Then why don’t you apologize with your body? Come on, retract your fangs and be nice, or I will really be angry.”

He pushed Aioria’s face towards Shura’s cock. His brother hesitated for a moment, his expression softening at the threat that Aioros really would be upset with him. He licked his lips, and Shura saw his fangs had disappeared, the way they had hidden them the first time he’d encountered them. After a moment, he wrapped his lips around the head of Shura’s length.

Shura exhaled the breath that he didn’t know he’d been holding. Aioria’s cold lips on his cock sent shivers of pleasure through him, and the sight of him taking him down to the hilt was maddening.

“While I’ll admit I had toyed with the idea of having you both in my bed together,” said Aioros, taking a small vial of lube from his pocket. “You two really exceeded my expectations. Jumping on each other so quickly, it’s a bit worrying. I’d say you two need some self control.”

He snapped his fingers and a tendril of darkness wrapped around the base of both their cocks, keeping them away from completion. Shura groaned.

“Fuck, Aioros!” he yelled in frustration.

The vampire snickered and took off his shirt, then opened his pants to release his erection. He stroked himself a few times, enjoying the sight of them. 

“You’re both so cute. I’ll take this opportunity to be mean to you,” he said with a mischievous smirk.

Shura eyes' rolled back when Aioria swallowed around him. He was so close and yet unable to come, it was driving him insane.

Aioros coated his fingers in the lube and inserted one finger inside Aioria.

“It is only polite, and so much more pleasurable to take some time to prepare your lover,” he said, and inserted another finger, spreading them inside him, yet looking for the spot inside.

Aioria shivered and pulled away from Shura.

“Ah! Aioros! I’m- So close,” he said.

Aioros took away his fingers, making him whine in frustration..

“Did I say you could stop?” 

Aioria bit his lower lip, tears of frustration running down his cheeks. 

“Please,” he begged. “Please I’m so close!”

Aioros slapped his ass once more.

“So disobedient,” he said. “Now, release Shura and keep going, and I might change my mind.”

The bindings holding Shura down vanished, and he could finally push himself up. He reached out to hold Aioria’s teary face. With the glitter of tears and his reddened lips in his handsome face, he looked so tempting, Shura’s heart longed for him.

“You are so cute like this,” he mused, thumbing away a tear from his cheek.

“He really is too cute for his own good,” said Aioros, already having three fingers inside him. “He knows I’ll forgive him anything if he starts pouting. I’ve spoiled him too much.”

He took his fingers out and coated his own cock. 

“But he truly is so delicious,” he said, and slowly pushed himself inside Aioria. “He’s so tight, I’m tempted to just grind into him like he did to you. I suppose I can see why he lost himself. But isn’t it much more enjoyable to get to know your lover’s body Aioria? To please them and make them feel good?”

He shifted, the angle, thrusting so that he was hitting the spot inside him and made him shiver with pleasure.

“Aioros… please, I want...I want to come…,” drawled Aioria, drooling over the bed as his brother’s thrusts grew fharder, faster.

“Do you? Is it too much to only chase your own pleasure? I hope you’ve learned your lesson.”

Aioria moaned, opening his mouth wide, tongue hanging out and eyes rolling back, the very picture of temptation and Shura couldn’t stop himself anymore. He pushed his cock into his mouth, burying himself right to the base.

Aioros groaned, thrusting harder, pushing Aioria against Shura. 

“Fuck, you two look so hot and he’s so tight,” said Aioros, before throwing his head back and releasing inside Aioria and collapsing over him. 

Shura pulled out of Aioria’s mouth, still so hard, he could scream. He grabbed Aioros by the hair.

“If you don’t release me, I’ll punch you in the face,” he muttered, giving him a murderous glare.

Aioros moaned and smiled.

“Really? But don’t you want to know how he feels?” he asked, pulling out of Aioria and caressing his ass.

Shura had been dancing on the edge for so long that he was about to beg for release right away. But the sight of Aioros pulling out of him and the tempting face of Aioria was too much. He licked his lips and nodded.

Aioros pulled up his brother to kneel on the bed while leaning against him and released the bindings holding his arms.

“Have you learned your lesson?” he asked in a whisper against his ear.

Aioria nodded, dazed, his eyes unfocused. He let his head fall back against Aioros’ shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” he drawled. “I’m sorry. Please, let me come. Get in me and let me come.”

Shura moved forward and placed a quick kiss on his reddened kiss, then laid him down on the bed. Aioria spread his legs on his own, opening up to him.

“Please,” he begged.

Shura lubed his cock, taking a moment to steady himself and regain his breath. Then he pressed against Aioria’s entrance, and looked up at his face.

“Are you…Do you really want…?” asked Shura, feeling his mouth run dry.

Aioria gave him a furious stare.

“Fuck, Shura, get inside me now!” he yelled.

Seeing him the same as always, Shura gave a relieved laugh, and pushed inside him. 

The tightness made his breath catch in his throat and he gave a drawn out moan. He made an effort to still himself once he bottomed out, but it was a test to his legendary self-control to do so. 

Aioros combed his hands through his hair, looking at him with loving eyes.

“You’re both so beautiful right now,” he whispered.

Shura looked down at Aioria, seeing his face contorted in pleasure, thrashing underneath him.

“More, more,” he gasped, opening his legs wider.

Shura started thrusting faster, harder, quickly losing control of the rhythm and only rutting against him.

Aioros released the tendrils at the base of their cocks and they came at the same time, blacking out from the pleasure.

Shura woke up because of the sound of running water nearby, and he looked around, blinking against the soft light of the candles. Next to him, Aioria snoozed, a peaceful look in his face. Aioros walked out of the bathroom and noticed he had woken up. He padded up to him.

“Hey,” he said, caressing Shura’s hair. “You awake now? I prepared a bath for you both.”

Shura reached out to grab his hand. 

“So you’re really not angry?” he asked, because he couldn’t live with wondering about the truth.

Aioros lifted Shura hands' to his lips and kissed his fingers.

“I love you two so much. I fear I would love you despite anything.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooof, what a challenge! This story really took me out of my comfort zone, to be honest. But I'm so glad to have finished it.
> 
> This fic sets up some of the background story for the end of the trilogy to come, so stay put. I'm working on it right now.
> 
> Shura and Aioros have always struck me as a couple that work out very well together and would be very healthy but that end up being separated by destiny and by the very things that would make them a healthy couple, such as loyalty, discipline, and the focus on doing the right thing. I wanted to explore those things here and I hope it has turned out to be an enjoyable story for you. Please let me know if you liked it!
> 
> As always I'm on twitter as @alexdamien  
> And for updates on my writing go to alexdamien.wordpress.com


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